New Zealand: Consultation Document: Supporting the uptake of Smart Electric Vehicle charging in New Zealand

 

New Zealand has published a Consultation Document regarding the uptake of Smart Electric Vehicle charging in New Zealand.

The notified consultation document invites feedback on options to support the uptake of Smart EV chargers. It outlines draft objectives and uses these to evaluate and seek feedback on 5 options:

• The status quo
• Introducing voluntary labelling for EV chargers
• Introducing mandatory labelling for EV chargers
• Introducing requirements that EV chargers supplied in New Zealand must meet a set of ‘smart requirements’.
• Introducing requirements that EV chargers supplied in New Zealand must meet a set of ‘smart requirements’ in combination with mandatory labelling.

The discussion document also seeks feedback on whether the policy options should only apply only to private chargers or all new chargers.

Most EV charging in New Zealand happens at home, and there is a risk that as EV uptake increases this could significantly increase peak demand. Without smarter charging solutions, this could lead to higher infrastructure costs and increased power bills for all consumers. Modelling by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority shows widespread use of smart and energy efficient EV chargers could save the country $4 billion by 2050.

Smart EV chargers offer a practical solution. These devices can communicate with the electricity system to charge vehicles when electricity is cheaper and more readily available. This helps reduce pressure on the grid, lowers household energy costs, and supports New Zealand’s transition to a more resilient and renewable energy future.

The consultation document therefore seeks feedback on a range of options to support uptake of smart EV chargers.

The full consultation document is available HIER.

To find out more about EV charging regulations and standards, please do not hesitate to contact the Institute for Global Automotive Regulatory Research.