Japan has more electric car charging points than petrol stations, new figures suggest.

The Japan Times has quoted data from Nissan Motor Corporation saying there are now 40,000 electric car chargers in homes and on the street, but just 34,000 traditional fuel stations.

Japan’s electric car support services are growing at the same time as batteries for the cars are becoming more powerful.

This has made Nissan’s all-electric Leaf vehicle one of the most popular cars in the country.

“An important element of the continued market growth is the development of the charging infrastructure,” said Nissan Chief Financial Officer Joseph Peter.

The Japanese government plans to set up two million charging stations by 2020, while the cost of batteries for the next-generation vehicles should be about one-fortieth of 2006 prices by 2030, according to Japan’s Economy Ministry.

Closer to home, the New Zealand Government wants to double the number of electric vehicles in every year to reach 64,000 by 2021.

The NZ Minister for Transport last week announced a series of measures to boost uptake, including a new Road User Charge exemption for heavy electric vehicles, a $6 million innovation fund and allowing electric vehicles in bus lanes.

A full press release from Transport Minister Simon Bridges is available here.