Tourism operator’s call sparks debate for electrification

A tourism company that has invested in an electric bus is calling on fellow tourism operators to go electric so that a “big recharger system” can be installed.

Outback New Zealand managing director David Gatward-Ferguson said Queenstown only had a small overnight charger.

The company wanted to help other tourism and transport companies to go electric so that a “major player” could put in a recharger system for electric vehicles (EVs).

“We cannot afford to put in our own very big infrastructure, so we need other companies to come along and buy electric commercial vehicles.

“We’ve talked to some of these big [infrastructure] players, and if more businesses are getting electric vehicles, then they will seriously look at putting the charging system into the area,” he said.

Outback New Zealand was the parent company of Nomad Safaris, and had purchased a 24 seater electric bus that was expected to reach New Zealand next week, Gatward-Ferguson said.

The company would start operating it from November in Glenorchy and Paradise, and would help it stop emitting 17 tonnes of carbon a year, he said.

Great South general manager of tourism and events Mark Frood said Nomad Safari’s purchase of the electric bus was great from an environmental and sustainability perspective.

“It’s nice to see an innovator and a leader start to look at positioning alternative energy forms of transport.

“We’ve got HWR [Group] already that looks at hybrid hydrogen in Southland, and this is a great message.”

Frood said the EV and its infrastructure space was an area where Southland could work together with Queenstown and Central Otago regions, alongside others in New Zealand, to support each other and work on growing the EV infrastructure.

“That’s something that we’re moving toward in our own way.”

This collaboration could come in the form of looking at areas where infrastructure would be ideal, lobbying, and having the messaging on their websites, maps and apps, Frood said. all