New Zealand sets national EV charging rules

- Sydney (9 April)

New Zealand’s government has introduced national permitting rules for electric vehicle (EV) chargers to cut costs and prevent delays, supporting its plan to boost the country’s charging point count from 1,800 to 10,000 by 2030.

The New Zealand Government has amended the National Environmental Standards for Electricity Transmission Activities (NES – ETA) to create nationally consistent standards for EV charging infrastructure, Minister for Transport Chris Bishop said on 9 April.

District councils currently set permitting rules for EV charging infrastructure. New NES-ETA standards will replace stricter district plan rules from 7 May, with more lenient council rules remaining in place, Bishop said.

New Zealand utility Meridian Energy – which runs a national network of AC and DC chargers – supports the move. “This is excellent news and a positive change for the rollout of EV charging infrastructure,” Meridian’s Head of Energy Richard Sandford told Lithos today.