Operation Laser Kiwi: help us take New Zealand-made energy on the road
In our policy manifesto, the number one thing we're hoping to get across the line is a scheme that gives everyone access to low-interest long-term loans for electrification upgrades. We believe the best way to do that is through the proposed Ratepayer Assistance Scheme and The Post's Harriet Laughton has looked at that scheme and what that might mean. Several large councils are already backing it, others are being asked to support it, and Simon 'MegaWatts' Watts has also indicated he's supportive. That could mean New Zealanders would be able to get cheaper finance to install electric appliances like heat pumps for space and hot water and solar and battery systems - and they would be saving money on their energy bills from day one.
Read moreDownload the document hereA pinch and a punch (and a big bunch of new EVs) for the first of the month. The Rewiring gang is always pretty jazzed about the release of the new car sales numbers each month and, while the short-term stats tend to bounce around a bit, the long-term trend is clear: sales of new EVs are up by 150% year to date and sales of new petrol vehicles are down by 15% in the same period.
Read moreDownloadWe sit down with Rewiring Aotearoa's Mike Casey for a wide-ranging conversation about one of the biggest costs facing New Zealanders: energy. We get into power and petrol, and ask what can politicians actually do to make your power bill and petrol bill cheaper? We talk about the practical policy changes that could make a difference, what’s getting in the way, and whether politicians are making energy more complicated than it needs to be.
For a minute there you couldn’t move for political parties pledging the path to a solar future. The Greens, Labour and National have all set out policies to make domestic installation of panels affordable, whether through cheap loans, subsidies, or a mix of both. For Act, the focus is dismantling regulatory hurdles. Across all the initiatives, you can see the fingerprints of Rewiring Aotearoa and its CEO, Mike Casey. For the last three years, the nonprofit charity has been advancing the case for a more electric New Zealand, with an emphasis on rooftop solar, making its arguments using methods ranging from data-heavy documentation to giving politicians a hoon on an electric tractor at Casey’s 100% electric cherry orchard in Central Otago.
Read moreDownload
