A Dutch adventurer who has driven across the globe in his electric vehicle is set to begin the New Zealand leg of his three-year journey.
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Checking out the impressive scenery at Uluru |
Wiebe Wakker has driven 100,000km in his EV from Amsterdam to Sydney, crowd-sourcing EV charging, meals and accommodation through his website Plug Me In Project, along the way.
Although he completed his goal to reach Sydney in early April, he’s now exploring New Zealand in an electric vehicle. “I’ve always wanted to come to New Zealand, but in my original plan I didn’t think it would be possible.
However, I received some great support to ship my vehicle over here from Sydney and I have the opportunity for a sort of encore to complete my global EV adventure.” Arriving in Auckland last month with his custom 2009 VW Golf EV, Wakker starts a two-month journey across both the North and South Islands, ending in Bluff.
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Wiebe (centre) at the Ports of Auckland |
He’s been impressed by the enthusiasm for EVs in New Zealand, with over 13,700 EVs currently registered, and the growing charging network that he’ll make use of throughout his journey.
While he is in New Zealand he’ll take the opportunity to test one of Tourism Holdings Limited’s (THL) Britz EV Campervans, making the North Island Coastal Loop journey around Auckland, Coromandel and Raglan.
“It’s great to see a tourism business like THL embracing EVs. It makes complete sense that in such a clean and green country like New Zealand, tourists can make environmentally friendly choices in the ways they travel.”
There are now fast chargers at least every 75km on 90 percent of New Zealand’s state highway network, with three or four new stations typically appearing every month. “For me this final leg of my journey is a time to have some fun and explore this beautiful country by EV.
My first stop will be to unveil the new EV charging stations at DB Breweries in Otahuhu and enjoy a Heineken zero percent beer over lunch before hitting the road again. I’m looking forward to hearing about DB’s sustainability activity and sharing my story to hopefully provide some inspiration.”
