The case for energy loans: read our latest explainer
Compared to most of our MPs, Scott Willis is a very early adopter. As the latest episode of our 'Political Power' series shows, the Green MP's home in Waitati has had solar panels on the roof since 2013 and he bought a Nissan Leaf in 2016. He runs a full suite of electric gardening gear - which can often be a powerful gateway drug after people see how well they perform - and recently upgraded to a BYD Atto3 with a 60kwH battery.
He has a wood stove that helps with cooking and heats the water, as well as a gas cooktop, but that is nearing the end of its life and, as he says, "I am looking forward to it breaking down; I'm looking forward to the induction stove that will fit in that space".
Willis ran the peer-to-peer Blueskin Energy Network for several years and it provided signals to users on how clean or dirty their energy was so they could adapt their behaviour accordingly. Increasingly, we're seeing economic signals being offered to customers to either reduce their use, or contribute to the system with solar, batteries and, in the future, EVs. That's the kind of 21st Century approach he thinks we need to take.
"If you want a slogan, it's 'Think Distributed', not 'Think Big' ... We all have energy assets at home. We have hot water systems, we have heating systems, we have transport, we've got cooking facilities. All of those assets can be used much more intelligently and, at the moment, most of that value is lost because it's not able to be incorporated into our wider energy system."
"We've lost the cops!" In our next instalment of Political Power, we managed to get David Seymour, deputy prime minister and leader of the Act Party, behind the wheel of a Zeekr 7x when he was in Queenstown recently. As is often the case when people take a new EV for a spin, there was much chortling as he gave it heaps up the Remarkables ski field road - and, if we take him at his word, we might even see him give Mike Casey's tractor heaps up Parliament steps in the future.
Read moreDownloadEVs are having a moment right now, so how can we get more people driving electric; Tom Selleck sums up how EV owners are feeling right now and staggering analysis shows the sun's prices have been unaffected by decades of geopolitical conflict; Scion goes solar to get off gas, while dairy farmers and homes go with solar and batteries to keep going; Saul Griffith takes his solar-powered scooter to Canberra and starts a fight with regulators; the Cancer Society's Lions Lodge in Hamilton gets some panels donated and will save $17,000 a year; and killing the Friday vibe with new studies on how fossil fuel companies made massive profits after the last energy crisis in 2022 and carbon emissions making our blood boil - perhaps quite literally.
Read moreDownloadAn electrification advocate says the rising price and falling supply of gas may not be a bad thing in the long-term. PwC research —commissioned by Gas Industry Co— has found New Zealand's gas market will need to shrink sharply as domestic supply declines. It warns this could mean business closures, job losses, and higher energy costs.