Drive Electric began life in 2011 as APEV (the Association for the Promotion of Electric Vehicles), when fewer than 20 EVs were registered in New Zealand. Over the following eight years the organisation rebranded to Drive Electric (2014), launched five whitepapers on EV infrastructure, energy and policy, developed the EVolocity educational programme, toured Nordic EV expert Christina Bu around the country, and worked with Government on the policy groundwork that led to the Clean Car programme, taking EV registrations from under 20 to 15,000 by mid-2019.
Making the Move: How Some of New Zealand’s Leading Organisations Have Gone Electric.
Various rebates become available to purchasers of BEVs and PHEVs. Drive Electric Chair Mark Gilbert joins the Clean Car Sector Leadership Group established by this new policy.
Drive Electric makes submissions on the:
EECA Consultation Document ‘Developing a Short Term Roadmap for the Public Electric Vehicle Charging Network’.
Emissions Reduction Plan Discussion Document.
Land Transport (Clean Car) Amendment Bill.
Webinar launch of the new Drive Electric website platform, with keynote speakers Hon. Michael Wood, Minister of Transport, and Andrew Casseley, CEO of EECA. The site is built to be a more fulsome resource for all things electric transport in New Zealand.
More rebates become available for new low emission vehicle registrations and a fee schedule for higher emission vehicles is introduced.
Drive Electric welcomes the Government's Emissions Reduction Plan, which confirms transport's low-emissions future will be electric. Chair Mark Gilbert calls for broad cross-party support, welcoming commitments to a national charging infrastructure strategy, a vehicle scrappage scheme, a social leasing programme, and investigation of extending the Clean Car Discount.
Drive Electric makes a submission on the Government's review of the Road User Charges system, supporting the principle that EV drivers should eventually contribute to road funding, but no more than equivalent petrol vehicle drivers.
Drive Electric launches its first State of the Nation report, “E-Mobility in New Zealand, 2023,” covering progress to 30 June 2023 and setting out what's still needed to deliver a cleaner, cheaper transport future.
The Clean Car Discount ends on 31 December 2023. The same day, Kirsten Corson is appointed Chair of Drive Electric, succeeding Mark Gilbert after 11 years leading the organisation, with Eric Pellicer appointed Deputy Chair.
Electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids begin paying road user charges from 1 April 2024 — around $76 per 1,000km for EVs — ending an exemption that had been in place since 2009 to encourage EV uptake.
Government repeals Clean Car Standard emissions-reduction targets under urgency, giving the Minister of Transport power to set new ones — weakening a key pillar of NZ's clean vehicle policy.
At Drive Electric's AGM, Anthony MacLean (BoostAuto) and Fabian Lloyd (Fonterra) join the board, adding heavy transport, commercial and OEM expertise. Outgoing board member Sam Steele and long-serving events manager Hannah Henderson are awarded Lifetime Membership.
New Zealand's EV fleet passes the 100,000 mark for NZ-new registrations (100,323 battery EVs and plug-in hybrids), with 138,626 light EVs now on New Zealand roads — more than double the 45,000 recorded in 2021.
Drive Electric launches its 2026 State of the Nation report at Parliament, calling for consistent, cross-party EV policy after New Zealand's slide from world-leading EV adoption following the Clean Car Discount repeal.
Drive Electric writes an open letter to Transport Minister Hon Chris Bishop urging the Government to maintain and strengthen the Clean Car Standard, as policy uncertainty continues to weigh on EV uptake.