Vector has today welcomed the ICCC’s report on Accelerated Electrification.

Vector agrees that accelerating the electrification of transport and process heat will play a major role in reducing the country’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Initiatives to reduce carbon emissions will impact the whole energy supply chain, and Vector supports an approach that considers the whole energy system.

Vector Chief Executive Simon Mackenzie said, “Given the criticality of electricity to overcome decarbonisation challenges involving the transport and heat processing sectors, we believe a Ministry of Energy is needed to ensure a coordinated approach to policy development and an aligned regulatory framework.

“A dedicated Energy Ministry will help guide the decision-making that will give the industry the certainty it needs to continue to make smart investment decisions that align with the country’s decarbonisation goals.”

Vector outlines the case for establishing a Ministry of Energy in Section G, page 40 of its submission on the Electricity Price Review options paper.

In recent years, Vector has proactively embraced an innovative, technology-led approach to network management and planning to prepare Auckland city for the rise of EVs, and other emerging energy system challenges.

As noted by ICCC Chair David Prentice, ‘accelerated electrification will not happen if electricity is too expensive’, and therefore technology and innovation must play a leading role in ensuring electricity remains affordable as demand increases.

“While centralised generation has a role to play in meeting growing electricity demand, we can’t lose sight of the critical role new customer-owned solutions will play in meeting our decarbonisation goals,” said Mr Mackenzie.

“Cost curves for distributed energy resources like solar and battery storage are falling all the time which means increasingly they will become a more viable option for Kiwi homes and businesses.

“As part of our focus on the future, it is essential we continue to invest in the system management capability necessary to facilitate the uptake of these distributed energy resources to help overcome a growing mix of energy challenges.”

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