ChargeNet reports massive increase in year-on-year users

Tuesday, 25 January 2022

Not every EV uses the same kind of plug - here are the main ones in New Zealand.

It seems that another year of lockdowns and Covid struggles hasn’t dampened the enthusiasm for EV buyers, with ChargeNet reporting big increases in users, charging sessions and energy delivered.

The nationwide charging network told Stuff that there was a 38 per cent increase in charging sessions across the DC fast charging network (not included slower AC chargers), and nearly 50 per cent more energy delivered across the entire network, based on the date range of 1 January to 31 December 2020 and 1 January to 31 December 2021.

ChargeNet also added 29 new fast chargers over 2021, bringing the total close to the 300 milestone. Including AC chargers, there are more than 325 AC & DC chargers across 160 sites around the country.

ChargeNet has reported a big increase in users, charging sessions and energy delivered over 2021.

There were also a big jump in users, with 52 per cent more people accessing the charging network in 2021 compared to 2020. As a result, charging sessions increased by between 15 and 51 per cent.

* ChargeNet to add three more 300kW hypercharger sites

* New Zealand's EV charging network continues to expand

Obviously, this is because the EV fleet is rapidly growing. Between December 2019 and December 2021, there were nearly 10,000 EVs registered in New Zealand, including new and used models, according to the Ministry of Transport.

For 2021, the MIA reported there were 6899 new battery-electric vehicles registered, compared to 1554 for the year before.

The top-selling electric models in 2021 were the Tesla Model 3 (3271 units) followed by the MG ZS EV (872 units) and the Hyundai Kona Electric (825 units).

As for cost, ChargeNet says an average rapid charging session costsless than $8, which typically generates around 100km of range, assuming the charger is outputting 50kW for around 15 minutes.

All of ChargeNet’s 300kW hyperchargers are powered by renewable energy as well, and at least 80 per cent of New Zealand’s electricity is sourced using renewable methods.

In fact, all but four of the ChargeNet-owned DC chargers use 100 per cent renewable energy. Those four chargers are in Turangi, Ohakune, National Park and Te Kuiti.