Mid-range EV touring in 2023
Embarking on a 1,100km round trip from Christchurch to Invercargill in my newly purchased 40kW Nissan Leaf, was a lesson in comparison, as I couldn’t help but be impressed with how far electric vehicle (EV) travel has come since the first time I made this journey in a 24kW Nissan Leaf five years ago. The vast changes between this vehicle and my first one also highlight the remarkable progress in charging infrastructure and EV adoption in New Zealand over the same time period.
The Charging Evolution: From More Stops to Less Fuss
Gone are the days of endless charging stops. In 2018, my short-range EV demanded eight charging stops and an overnight stay in Dunedin, totaling 3 hours of charging and $33 (excluding overnights, and with the previously free chargers at Dunedin, Hamden, and Oamaru).
However, this time, my mid-range marvel thrived with just four charging stops at Temuka, Oamaru, Balclutha, and Gore, requiring a total of $59 and 2 hours 27 minutes. Thanks to the larger battery, the charging time was notably reduced, resulting in a smoother and more streamlined experience. Brace yourself for even faster charging with more modern vehicles.
I would say the greatest change between these trips is just the number of charging stops. Time spent charging is similar but is more concentrated. It feels weird to drive past Rakaia and Ashburton, or to skip Palmerston and Hampden to go straight to Dunedin, but the bigger battery of the 40kW vehicle allows for that easily.
In reflecting on these journeys, the most striking difference lies in the number of charging stops. Although the total time spent charging remains comparable, it now feels concentrated, passing by familiar landmarks like Rakaia and Ashburton, or skipping Palmerston and Hampden to go straight to Dunedin, but the bigger battery of the 40kW vehicle allows for that easily. Further in the positives, there’s a welcome reduction in the fussing around with chargers, though rest breaks become less frequent.
Embracing the Open Road
The biggest advantage has been having more flexibility with the route and changing stops; if a charger is broken or being used, you can skip that one, or you can charge at the one before.
Last week when the Ashburton charger was misfunctioning, we were able to limp to Orari, another 45 km on. On this trip when we got to Timaru from Omaru and found the Warehouse South charger broken, we had the choice of continuing to Temuka (We ended up charging at the Pak n Save charger instead).
The Rise of EV Infrastructure: A Journey in Progress
The other big difference between my time 5 years ago and this time is also the amount of charging infrastructure, and the number of EVs on the road. Oamaru for many years only had one fast charger; nowadays it has 2. We had both locations available on our way down, but on our way back up; a sunny Sunday morning; there was competition. We waited half an hour for a Polestar to finish, and before we left, at least 3–4 other EV drivers came past to see if they could charge.
Some locations are better than others; Dunedin now has 1 duel 75kW charger, 2x 50kW chargers and 2x 25kW chargers. However the locals still complain about the lack of charging infrastructure and on Thursday night, every single charger was in use. Luckily we only had to wait for 10 minutes for the 25kW Warehouse charger to open up.
Meanwhile, between Invercargill and Dunedin, there is a just one 50kW charger in Milton; (40 km from Dunedin), Balclutha (80 km) and Gore (151 km). Short-range EVs will need to charge at each of these, but mid-range oners will want to charge at Gore (Or Balclutha) depending on direction of travel; which can create some bottlenecks — we waited for 20 min in Gore for an EV6 to charge.
This trip I made the most of the charging stations on the Southland Scenic Route; visiting each of the chargers around the Catlins, and I’m very thankful for the work that EECA is doing to put in charging infrastructure in these more remote locations.
A Journey Towards a Full-Fledged Network
Many people new to the EV lifestyle complain about the amount of EV charging infrastructure available. Some of the older hands also complain about the number of EVs on the road using the increasing EV infrastructure.
However, I still think we have it pretty good. The charging network is improving year after year. There are bound to be growing pains, it’s simply not commercially viable to invest in the amount of EV charges needed to prevent anyone from needing to wait for a charge and we shouldn’t be aiming for that; when the fleet is less than 2% of the total vehicle fleet. We are making great steps, and I hope that things will continue to improve. In the meantime, people do need to allow for the possibility of extra travel time, if you are waiting for a charger. We simply don’t have enough money or usage to build multiple chargers in every location.
I love seeing new 50kW charging stations at key destinations like Oamaru, and I hope we will continue to see the variety in charging speeds offered as well. Hyper-chargers for people that have long-range modern faster-charging EVs, like the new one in Dunedin.
It’s also great to see destination charging banks being developed in places like Invercargill and Ashburton, by new providers like Zero.
The Road Ahead
When every medium-sized town has multiple fast and slow charging options, and every key route location has banks of multiple chargers, the job will be done. But it’s a journey that will take time, and we need to understand that we are making progress toward that goal.
This year we have seen new operator Zero building new charging hubs and start delivering both destination and fast chargers in multiple locations around New Zealand. We are also expecting to see the results of the ‘Closing the Gap’ EECA program turn on, which includes new Chargers in Kohatu, Haast, Hari Hari, St Arnaud, and Springs Junction.
Round 9 of EECA funding opens up $3,000,000 toward 25 specific locations that need more charging infrastructure based on current usage data. This funding will prioritize projects that can be delivered before Christmas 2023 and the funded projects should be announced soon.
Next year, we have the EV Roaming pilot program which seeks to offer a unified account system for Chargenet, OpenLoop and Z Energy, to allow open access to chargers without needing a separate account for each network.
Over the next three years, New Zealand’s biggest charging provider Chargenet has committed to double the size of their charging network.
Looking further ahead, EECA has said that the national strategy for New Zealand will include 25–35 large public charging hubs every 150–200 km on the State Highway Network. These hubs will feature many fast charging stations, public facilities, and food options.
All of these efforts combined will support the growing demand for the electrification of our transport sector. We are well on track to having a robust network perfect for the different types of EVs on our network today, and the ones that will join us tomorrow.
