Read our new Electric Homes and Vehicles report
"Driving around New Zealand on locally-made electrons should be cheaper than driving around New Zealand on foreign-sourced molecules." And with proposed changes to the Road User Charges system, which Mike Casey discussed with RNZ's Eloise Gibson, it will be.
We've been asked a lot of questions about changing to a system based on distance rather than paying fuel excise at the pump and our number crunching has shown that over three million petrol cars (including hybrids) will now pay more, while just a few big petrol cars will pay less. Electric vehicles were already paying RUCs, so this levels the playing field and make EVs the cheapest option - and much cheaper over their lifetime. In our policy manifesto we ranked this change as a 4/10 in terms of impact.
It’s important to remember that no fossil fuel car is efficient when you compare it to an electric one and this change creates a stronger economic signal to choose electrons over molecules when the time comes. We can't 'hybrid' our way to a zero emissions vehicle fleet, just as we can't 'efficiency' our way to a zero-emissions economy.
People should pay for the impact they have, so a large, heavy 4x4 should pay more for its impact on roads than a small hatchback, as should large trucks pay more than cars.
There are also plenty of external impacts on society from the emissions and other effects of vehicles that should be economically accounted for, too. And there is still time to design that in to this system.
Read our full statement here.
When Mike Casey bought his house near Cromwell, it came with gas bottles on the side of the home for water and an expensive diesel system for the underfloor heating. He replaced both of them with a Steibel Eltron system and it's been saving him money ever since. As technical manager Bhawesh Singh told him at the Electrify Queenstown conference, there has been a big influx in enquiries from homes looking to get off the molecules and onto electrons.
Read moreDownloadConfidence that cutting regulations to make solar power more accessible - won't jeopardise people's safety. A new Regulation Ministry reports laid out a potential blueprint to legalise plug-in solar and reduce the time and cost of panel installation. Rewiring Aotearoa CEO Mike Casey shares his thoughts with Andrew Dickens.
The burgeoning demand for solar was also a chance to address a mismatch between the numbers of training opportunities available and young people searching for work, Casey said. "The mums of New Zealand are telling me that there's not enough apprenticeships for their kids and the solar installers of New Zealand are telling me there's not enough trained people."
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