Choosing New Zealand's energy future

New Zealand is ripe for an electric vehicle boom.

Penny Nelson, CEO of the Sustainable Business Council, discusses how we can select the right energy path for New Zealand.

OPINION: With Paris climate discussions around the corner, it's time for us to have some big conversations on the future of energy in New Zealand. How are we going to move to a low-carbon, high-growth future?

The Business NZ Energy Council has released a report which sets out two different energy futures. The scenarios provide plausible assessments of what might happen based on how we respond to uncertainties. We can now make more informed choices.

Penny Nelson, CEO of the Sustainable Business Council.

Over the next 30 years we want to keep growing our economy, but that can't come at the expense of the environment or society. We need to shift the way we use and source energy and embrace technology changes across electricity, transport and industry.

There are challenges and opportunities living in a fast-changing world where new technology and awareness about the impact of energy use are revolutionising the way we think and behave. In the future, the 'internet of things' will see consumers and businesses managing energy use at the click of a button or through sensors and software.

Companies like Flick Electric are already re-imagining the way consumers interact with energy. Customers have access to a phenomenal amount of information that means they can change their behaviour, save money and reduce the load on the electricity network at peak times. What will the consumer relationship with energy look like 30 years from now?
Of course, electricity is only part of the mix. EECA chief executive, Mike Underhill, says the bigger challenge for New Zealand is increasing energy efficiency in transport and from industrial heat. Both are larger energy sectors than electricity and significant carbon emitters. Transport currently makes up 17% of our overall emissions.

Is transport another area where we can speed up change in areas we know we can have an impact like increasing the number of electric vehicles in the country? With 80% of our electricity generation coming from renewable energy we have plenty of low-carbon electricity to power electric vehicles. But at the moment, there are only about a thousand electric vehicles on our roads.

There are a few reasons plug-in hybrid and electric cars haven't taken off. One is that we don't have the volume to make it worthwhile for importers. We're also a nation of second-hand car owners - brand new electric vehicles aren't affordable. We also don't have the infrastructure we need.

Things are changing. Businesses are making the connection between our energy mix - the cars we drive - and our clean, safe and green brand. Companies like Downer and Mighty River Power already have electric vehicles in their business fleets. Air New Zealand is switching its entire ground fleet to electric vehicles and Vector is introducing dozens of charging stations around Auckland.

Is this our chance to work together - to look at what our transport energy mix looks like in one, five or 10 years from now? Could we make a start by setting a joint target - business and government - of doubling electric vehicles in New Zealand within a year?

We can shape our energy future despite the uncertainties. The BEC energy scenarios challenge us to have the conversation about what we want. Let's take the chance to talk about how we reach a low-carbon, high-growth future.

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