Electric car lobby group Drive Electric wants the Government to introduce direct subsidies to speed up the switch to EVs.
The chairman Mark Gilbert said the Government needs to more clearly signal how it will hasten the move from petrol and diesel fuels to electricity.
Chairman of Drive Electric lobby group, Mark Gilbert. Picture/Supplied.
“EV infrastructure is now visible across New Zealand, corporates are more inclined to include EVs in their fleets, there is a larger variety of EVs on the market with more to come and there are almost 12,000 EVs on New Zealand roads," he said.
However the Government needed to more clearly signal how it would encourage the introduction of more EVs to the country's vehicle fleet.
“Some of the benefits of more EVs on the road include reducing emissions, improving air quality, and saving a lot of funds going overseas into crude oil.
“These are all things that have material outcomes. The question is where do we go from here?”
He said there was little hope of reaching the current goal of 64,000 EVs by 2021, set by the previous government.
“At almost 12,000 EVs on the road, there’s no chance of getting to 64,000 vehicles without additional political will," he said.
"We’ve got to get clear insights of what the policy incentives are going to be, and when they will be applied.”
Gilbert hopes the government is considering Drive Electric’s Project ‘Switch’ proposal that would offer companies Fringe Benefit Tax relief on new EVs for a period to accelerate EV uptake in corporate fleets.
“Project ‘Switch’ is a no brainer because it’s an opportunity cost, not a loss of money and it doesn’t have to be open-ended.”
Gilbert said Drive Electric would continue lobbying for a faster uptake of EVs.