The vehicles are expected to appear in the South Island within 18 months.
Fifty vehicles from Norwegian manufacturer Paxster AS have arrived in Auckland, with parcel and mail delivery to start on Auckland's North Shore shortly, following a successful trial in New Plymouth.
New Zealand Post acting chief operating officer Mark Stewart said within the next two years there would be 500 Paxsters in operation, which he understood would be the largest fleet of road-legal, fully electric vehicles in New Zealand.
"Early calculations suggest New Zealand Post will make very good reductions in fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions by using these electric vehicles,'' he said in a statement yesterday.
The New Zealand Post Group already had 50 fully electric delivery vehicles and 118 hybrid cars in Kiwibank's fleet.
Other areas to get Paxsters during the next 18 months include parts of Hamilton, Christchurch, Wellington, Palmerston North and Dunedin and smaller centres nationally.
Mr Stewart said options for purchasing electric vehicles from New Zealand firms were considered, before the Paxster, which won a 2013 Norwegian design excellence award, was chosen as the best available, with the longest battery life.
The Paxsters, which have an estimated 10-year lifespan, will be used for combined parcel and mail deliveries in residential areas.
