How ready are you for electric vehicles in your business, or for your personal drive? Trends suggest you should start thinking about it sooner rather than later.

Worldwide adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is expected to increase significantly. By 2040, BloombergNEF expects 57 percent of all passenger vehicle sales, and over 30 percent of the global passenger vehicle fleet, will be electric.

But how popular are EVs in New Zealand? We’re way ahead of Australia, which has been described as the world’s number one EV laggard. We are, however, behind European EV leaders. For example, there are 2.7 EVs per 1000 people in New Zealand but 61.4 in Norway.

In New Zealand, EVs will become more appealing to fleet managers and consumers and make/model availability grows and charging infrastructure reach increases. This will see EV purchase prices coming down, and the benefits of cheaper running costs and lower emissions will become more compelling.

The New Zealand Government is also planning greater regulatory and legislative support, following the lead of many other countries which have introduced incentives for EV adoption – all seeking a mix of improved air quality, reduced emissions and less dependency on oil.

Local planning has already started with the recently proposed Clean Car Standard, and Clean Car Discount released for discussion and feedback in August.

As one of the world’s leading vehicle leasing and fleet management companies, LeasePlan has bold, global ambitions to lead its business customers to this lower emission transport future. This starts with educating businesses and key decision makers on options and considerations when it comes to transitioning from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric EVs.

Locally, the NZ LeasePlan team held an EV Drive Day for more at Hampton Downs on 25 September, allowing key customers an opportunity to get real world driving experiences with EV and PHEV models available now. Understanding what, how and when to switch is key for businesses with three to five year fleet planning cycles.

Eventually, every business will EVs, and there are some compelling reasons:

Lower running costs 

They just cost less to run than ICE vehicles, and that gap will grow as fuel costs increase and renewable energy reduces electricity costs.

Reduced emissions

Zero tailpipe emissions mean better air quality and a key plank in climate conservation.

Future-proofing

Economic forces are plain to see. EVs are central to all global auto makers future plans, and more and more countries are banning or penalising new petrol/diesel vehicle sales.

Growing incentives

The NZ Government looks set to promote EVs – and this could mean less tax, RUCs, registration costs, etc.

At LeasePlan, we’re primed to help you plan for this exciting future. 

Read more about how businesses can Start Electric here, or talk to LeasePlan.