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Started in the United States in 2011 by Plug-In America as National Plug-In Day, the simple idea was to hold simultaneous events across the country on the same day. By popular demand it was expanded to an entire week (two weekends) of events and the name changed to emphasise the thing we want people to do: drive electric.

New Zealand participated in 2015 with one or two events, but in 2016 it has been expanded to over 50 New Zealand based events. It is now called International Drive Electric week to more accurately represent its coverage and importance.

  • International Drive Electric Week is on from 10-18 September. It’s your chance/an opportunity for New Zealanders/ to see, ride or drive an EV and to talk to an EV owner about why they love their EV.
  • Find an event near you at: www.leadingthecharge.org.nz/calendar
  • In 2016 New Zealand will host the largest number of events outside the US for International Drive Electric Week. The number of events in NZ is double the number in California – with a population nearly 10 times the size of NZs! This is thanks to the 100 volunteers in the NZ EV owner community, via the Better NZ Trust, who are committed to promoting EV uptake.
  • Drive Electric is working together with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) to promote electric vehicles
  • Electric vehicles take advantage of New Zealand’s renewable electricity and create 80% fewer CO2 emissions than a petrol or diesel car.
  • Internationally it has been shown that public outreach by EV advocates is one of the most successful ways to increase EV uptake. Hearing from local owners about the fun, smooth and quiet EV driving experience, and the practicalities of things like charging and range, are often what sparks interest in buying an EV.
  • Curious about electric vehicles? Find out why your next car should be an EV: www.electricvehicles.govt.nz

EV Facts

  • Driving an EV in New Zealand produces 80% fewer CO2 emissions than a petrol or diesel car.
  • The cost of charging an EV is equivalent to paying 30 cents a litre for petrol.
  • Charging overnight at home is the cheapest and easiest way to charge an EV, costing up to $3 per 100km.
  • There are charging stations appearing all over New Zealand; at shopping malls, supermarkets, airports and even petrol stations. The Plugshare app gives a map of charging locations around NZ – some fast chargers are currently free and some cost up to $10 per 100km.
  • The average daily travel by car in New Zealand is less than 29km, and 90% of travel by car in NZ is less than 90km. This is easily within range of an EV – with a typical pure electric vehicle capable of around 120km on a single charge. If you need more range every day, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) may be worth considering. Or if you have a bigger budget, a top end pure electric vehicle has a range of around 350km.

EVs and NZ’s carbon emissions

  • In 2014 road transport created nearly 91% of our transport emissions and 17% of New Zealand’s overall emissions.
  • New Zealand’s abundant renewable electricity means EV drivers in New Zealand create 80% fewer CO2 emissions than those driving cars powered by petrol or diesel.

Full information about everything to do with EVs can of course be found on our  website, and we are happy to help if you have any queries – please contact us here.