9 July 2019

Mercury welcomes the Government’s leadership in reducing emissions in the transport sector through the Clean Car Standard and the Clean Car Discount proposals.

Recent independent reviews confirm that the most cost-effective action to reduce emissions in New Zealand is to replace fossil fuels in transport with renewable electricity.

“These proposals are positive steps, offering support and encouragement for the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) and the move towards de-carbonisation of the national fleet,” says Fraser Whineray, Mercury’s Chief Executive.

The Government’s proposals recognise that 85% of New Zealand’s electricity supply is already renewable, a significant advantage compared to most other countries in transitioning to electric vehicles and reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels.

“The electricity sector is ready,” says Mr Whineray. “New Zealand has enough renewable electricity generation already consented to power the entire light vehicle fleet. Several renewable projects have recently been announced including Mercury’s Turitea wind farm.”

The benefits of these proposals are clear for the country’s carbon emissions. They also advantage Kiwi drivers, as powering EVs with renewable electricity at an equivalent of 30c per litre compared with petrol will significantly reduce household energy costs.

“We know that Kiwis are ready to go electric. Research shows that the overwhelming majority of New Zealanders see electric vehicles as the way forward, with almost half of adult New Zealanders considering purchasing an EV in the next two years*. These new proposals will help car buyers make the best choices.”

Mr Whineray said Mercury welcomes the Government’s pragmatic approach to the implementation of the proposals by phasing in the obligations and giving flexibility to participants to manage any impacts across their operations.

“We look forward to working constructively with the Government and across the business community towards the proposed introduction of the proposals in 2021”.

ABOUT MERCURY’S FLEET

Fraser Whineray: “We’ve converted every vehicle we can to EV, and our mission of Energy Freedom inspires us to support the electrification of transport throughout New Zealand.”

In 2014 we committed to 70% of our vehicle fleet being electric by 2018 and we achieved that milestone one year early. Mercury has one of New Zealand’s largest business sector EV fleets.

84 out of 115 Mercury fleet vehicles are electric vehicles (including Plug-in Hybrid EVs)

*Mercury/TRA nationally representative online survey of New Zealanders’ perceptions of EVs FY18/FY19

ENDS

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