The guest editorial (Through the Portal) on EVs by Trevor Ammundsen is full of misinformation.
EVs in New Zealand are not fossil fuel-powered. About 85% of our electricity is generated without any use of fossil fuels, and with several significant solar farms and further wind farms coming online, that percentage is going to rise. New Zealand still has significant untapped fossil fuel-free electricity generation potential, which will be realised in turn.
Mr Ammundsen seems to think that EVs don’t pay for the electricity they use to charge. I wonder why he does not study at least a little of what he writes about. EVs have always paid for power when charged at home at the same rate as the house at that time, and at fast-charging stations, they pay a premium for the power for the benefit of fast charging. Despite that, EVs are far cheaper to run than internal combustion cars, certainly also after considering road user charges.
For New Zealand as a nation, the adoption of EVs brings significant benefits to our national trade balance. By reducing our reliance on imported carbon fuels, we can redirect those funds towards domestic industries, fostering economic growth and stability.
However, the primary driver for the global shift towards electrifying road transport is the urgent need to transition away from fossil fuels due to the escalating threat of climate change. This is a matter of utmost importance, one that Mr Ammunden dismisses and trivializes as ‘weather getting out of hand’.
Mr Ammundsen complains that batteries wear out. Well, so do combustion engines. However, the current generation of batteries is already good for several hundred thousand kilometres, and CTAL in China has just announced a new battery with a 1.5 million km or 15-year warranty. Find an internal combustion car with such a warranty.
Lastly, Lithium is mined not by lowly paid “native” (Ammundsen’s words!) labour but by modern technology, mostly in Australia and South America.
Why is The Informer repeatedly treating the town to such ill-informed talk?
