Fun facts about Electric Vehicles

25 May 2016

Hybrid Outlander PHEV

Electric vehicles (EV) have been leading the news lately, with more and more EV charging stations popping up around the country and our increased awareness for the environment and CO₂ emissions.

Electric vehicles are different from a standard petrol or diesel fuelled car in the way that they use electricity stored in a battery pack to power an electric motor and turn the wheels. You would charge up your EV in much the same way as you would charge your phone or laptop.

Here are some fun facts about Electric Vehicles

• As at April 2016, New Zealand had 1220 Electric Vehicles
• Electric vehicles are over 4 times more efficient than fuel engine vehicles.
• Electric vehicles are perfect for the New Zealand market, as most kiwis use their cars daily for short trips (Average 44km per day) and 85% of homes have off street parking where you can charge an EV.
• On 5 May, the Government announced a $7 million per year programme to increase the adoption of Electric Vehicles into NZ.
• The NZ Government forecasts the number of Electric vehicles to reach 64,000 in NZ by 2021.
• In 2015 the number of Electric Vehicles in the UK almost doubled by 21,000 to 41,000
• 22.4% of new car sales in Norway in 2015 were Electric Vehicles
• 1.3 million Electric Vehicles have now been sold worldwide
• Charging stations are being installed around New Zealand at an average rate of 1 every 2 weeks.
• A map of charging stations in New Zealand can be viewed at www.charge.net.nz/charging-map/

Sources: charge.net.nz, NZ Energy Consumer, International Energy Authority