Electric van makes long distance deliveries

Rombout van Riemsdijk may have the only all-electric delivery van in Whanganui. Photo / Bevan Conley.

On its first trip to Auckland, Rombout van Riemsdijk's electric delivery van ran out of power 7km short of the fast charge point in Waiouru.

The second hand Nissan e-NV200 has an official range of 160km between charges, but 120km is more realistic. It was 108km from Whanganui to Waiouru, all uphill, and the van was heavily loaded.

When it ran out of power there was a sawmill nearby, with three men working the night shift.

"Luckily they could help me out," he said.

He plugged in and got to the fast charge point at Waiouru, then continued to the next one at Taupo.

His route to Auckland was carefully plotted to take in charge points within the van's range. He had to charge at Rotorua and Cambridge, and extra distance added 200km to the trip.

On his return there was another problem - the fast charge point at Taupo was out of order. He had to charge up more slowly, elsewhere. All up the stops made a one-day trip to Auckland take two days.

Despite the inconvenience, Mr van Riemsdijk is committed to using the van to deliver the biodegradable disposable bowls, plates and cutlery he imports from China.

He's from an environmentally aware family, and used to have a certified organic garden in Hawera.

"I want to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and perhaps even set an example for other people."

Electric vehicles are ideal for short distance travel, he said. His son in Hawera has a family of four and a Nissan Leaf.

"That bit of power doesn't cost them anything, because he has 25 solar panels and is generating power himself."

Mr van Riemsdijk has run his business, EDEN Eco Products, from Whanganui for the last eight years. Whanganui High School is his biggest local customer, but most of his clients are in main centres.

He couriers product to them but also delivers personally to maintain customer relationships, driving about 40,000km a year.

He imported the van from Japan, at a cost of nearly $20,000. It's a 2015 model that had only done 2800km.

It has 300 moving parts, compared to 3000 for a petrol or diesel vehicle. It will be cheap to maintain, he said, and is very quiet.

Charging it overnight at home takes five hours and costs about $2. Charging at a fast charge point costs $9-$11 and takes about 25 minutes.

Whanganui doesn't have a fast charge point, but new points are planned for both Hawera and Sanson/Bulls this year.

"We are a bit of a forgotten area."

Mr van Riemsdijk carries charging cords on every trip, and can use the 25-minute charge time to have a cup of coffee, take a rest, read the paper or do a sudoku.

"I know those limits and I'm prepared to invest time and get clean air," he said.