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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."
New South Wales gets the memo about the importance of finance and announces scheme offering zero interest loans to households to upgrade to electric stuff; plug-in solar gets the tick of approval to go on sale in the UK soon and the New York Times says it could 'change America'; EVolocity takes electrification to the streets to gets the kids inspired (and eventually employed); a tour of the amazing recycling business Redwood Materials; Think Solar and BYD give it away now; and a skit that cuts close to the bone for many solar dads.
Read moreDownloadAdvances in technology and falling costs mean customer-owned solar and batteries can play a critical role in New Zealand’s energy infrastructure - improving affordability, resilience and sustainability. Multiple trading relationships (MTR) and peer-to-peer trading would enable this potential by increasing competition, customer choice, and innovation in the electricity market, unlocking greater consumer benefits from customer solar and batteries.
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