New Zealand: Energy
Fossil fuel subsidies are a staggering $5 trillion a year
8 Aug 2017
A new study finds 6.5 per cent of global GDP goes to subsidising dirty fossil fuels. That's more than $5 trillion a year.
Solar most popular form of new electricity generation
7 Aug 2017
Solar has become the world’s favourite new type of electricity generation.
Nuclear revival looks set to falter
7 Aug 2017
Hopes of a nuclear revival to combat climate change have been dashed as another prestige project runs into trouble.
Now Tesla wants to unite batteries and offshore wind
3 Aug 2017
Tesla and wind farm developer Deepwater Wind are teaming up to create the world's largest project that combines an offshore wind farm with large-scale electricity storage.
Free footy tickets lure oil workers to renewables
19 Jul 2017
Redundant North Sea energy workers are being offered free football tickets to build revolutionary new electricity storage systems.
Some biofuels worse than fossil fuels, warns report
18 Jul 2017
Biofuel use needs to increase to help to fight climate change as liquid fuels will be needed by aircraft and ships for many decades to come, finds a new report requested by the UK government.
Wood-for-coal switch would save us millions
14 Jul 2017
Using wood instead of coal to provide industrial heat would cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions by 460,000 tonnes and save more than $11 million a year in carbon credits, a new report says.
Handful of fossil fuel producers feed global emissions
11 Jul 2017
A mere 25 fossil fuel producers have accounted for just over half of global greenhouse emissions emissions in the past three decades, a new report says.
It's nonsense to say fracking can be made safe
30 Jun 2017
research can help to produce guidelines to reduce the risks associated with fracking, but ultimately it makes no sense to talk of fracking being entirely safe.
State should show the way, says bioenergy group
29 Jun 2017
The Government needs to put its new energy efficiency strategy into place – and State-owned operations are the place to start, says the Bioenergy Assocation.
Fossil lobbies threaten to scupper renewables in South Africa
29 Jun 2017
South African power utility Eskom recently repeated that it will not conclude supply contracts with the developers of new renewable energy power stations.
Closing nuclear plants threatens climate targets
29 Jun 2017
Closing nuclear plants in Europe and North America from 2020 threatens global plans to cut carbon emissions unless governments build new nuclear plants or expand the use of renewables.
Cutting emissions would slow growth, officials claim
28 Jun 2017
The Government is dealing with criticism of its industrial emissions target by turning it into a bottom line instead of a goal.
Science splits ranks over fossil fuel phase-out
28 Jun 2017
US academics are arguing with ferocity about how to achieve a fossil fuel phase out. But, for now, the debate is entirely academic.
Energy major talks of falling fossil fuel demand
27 Jun 2017
One of the world’s biggest energy companies sees problems ahead with falling fossil fuel demand and huge growth in renewables.
Renewable energy no longer niche investment
26 Jun 2017
Institutional investors remain eager to put money to work on renewable energy projects even as US President Donald Trump has vowed to revive their chief competitor: coal.
Not so much coal about ... but we're burning more
23 Jun 2017
New Zealand’s coal consumption is climbing.
Top banks still lend billions to extract fossil fuels
23 Jun 2017
Some of the world’s top banks are continuing to lend tens of billions for extracting the most carbon-intensive fossil fuels, according to a report of top lenders.
Renewables investment by 2040 will be in the trillions
23 Jun 2017
More than $10 trillion will be invested in new power generation capacity by 2040, of which nearly three-quarters will be in renewables.
SUCKER PUNCH: Plant pulls CO2 directly from the air
23 Jun 2017
On the roof of a waste incinerator outside Zurich, a Swiss firm has built the world’s first commercial plant to suck CO2 directly from the air.
Government keeps lid on Buller mining papers
22 Jun 2017
The Government is refusing to release briefing papers on proposed new coal mines on the Buller Plateau.
Tyre mountains will be turned into biofuels
22 Jun 2017
An Otaki company with a plan to turn mountains of waste tyres into biofuels says the key to success is processing them at multiple sites around the country.
World’s largest coal company to retire 37 mines
21 Jun 2017
The largest coal mining company in the world, Coal India, has announced plans to decommission a total of 37 mines which are no longer economically viable.
OCEAN OIL: Algae strain doubles fuel production
20 Jun 2017
Making biofuel from algae has just got a little bit easier - a newly engineered strain produces twice as much oil as its wild parent.
Solar power will kill coal much quicker than anyone thought
19 Jun 2017
Solar power is becoming cheap enough to push coal and even natural-gas plants out of business faster than previously forecast.
TOWER POWER: Another solar system is on the march
16 Jun 2017
Solar generation systems can now produce electricity and store it for hours, using solar tower power without any need for batteries.
Global demand for coal falls for second year in row
15 Jun 2017
Global demand for coal has fallen for the second consecutive year, according to a BP study, helped by the US and China burning less of the dirtiest fossil fuel.
Coal is dead, says world’s largest investment group
14 Jun 2017
BlackRock investment group, with $5 trillion in assets, is bullish on electric cars and renewables.
What biofutures need is America's Cup energy
13 Jun 2017
New Zealand could have a thriving biofutures industry, producing clean products from waste and cutting greenhouse gas emissions, if it put as much effort into addressing climate change as it puts into the America’s Cup yacht race, says the Bioenergy Association.
Costa Rica bids for world’s cleanest transport system
13 Jun 2017
Riding atop one of the world’s greenest electrical grids, Costa Rica is now aiming for the next logical step: having the cleanest transport system on the planet.
Farm waste could feed industry worth millions
12 Jun 2017
EDITORIAL | Queensland’s drive to develop a $100-million-a-year industry turning agricultural waste into bioproducts is exactly the type of thing New Zealand should be doing.
Coal India looks to diversify
9 Jun 2017
Coal India is looking to diversify its operations in the face of long-term uncertainty for coal because of the government’s thrust on renewable energy.
It's like taking nine million cars off the road
7 Jun 2017
More than 43 million voluntary carbon credits globally were retired last year – the equivalent of removing 9.3 million cars from the road, a new analysis says.
It's time for the oil industry to snuff out its flares
30 May 2017
The World Bank reckons the 16,000 flares worldwide produce around 350m tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, causing untold harm.
Jobs ahead for 24m renewable energy workers
30 May 2017
The number of people employed in the renewable energy sector across the globe could rise to 24 million by 2030.
Road transport killing our clean-energy benefits
29 May 2017
The climate benefits of New Zealand’s increasing use of renewable electricity generation are being wiped out by our love affair with road transport.
TUNNEL VISION: New energy lines up job for old mines
29 May 2017
Abandoned coal shafts could be turned into giant storage devices to hold vast amounts of renewable power.
World's largest floating solar platform just went on line
29 May 2017
The world's largest floating solar energy platform has has gone on line in China.
Drought brings drop in greenhouse gas emissions
26 May 2017
New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions fell slightly in 2015 - but only because a drought forced dairy farmers to cut production.
Move over, Tesla, here come batteries made in Europe
24 May 2017
Battery-making gigafactories are about to arrive in Europe, challenging Tesla and opening the way for a quicker shift toward green power for both cars and utilities.
The new energy highway leads in one direction ... to the sun
23 May 2017
Humans consume 221 tonnes of coal, 1066 barrels of oil, and 93,000 metric cubes of natural gas per second.
Welcome to the Wild West world of deep-sea mining
23 May 2017
The International Seabed Authority is racing to draft regulations for the nascent deep-sea mining industry.
Sharing green energy tips good for cutting business costs
22 May 2017
Sharing energy-saving ideas such as using seawater pumps to heat buildings is helping big charities and businesses to cut costs while protecting the planet.
New Buller mines could emit CO2 of 3m cars
19 May 2017
Emissions resulting from potential new coal mines on the Buller plateau could put as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as another three million cars on New Zealand’s roads for the next 20 years, an environmental group warns.
UK nuclear industry faces Brexit fall-out
19 May 2017
Leaving the EU treaty that prevents radioactive waste falling into the wrong hands could prove costly for the UK nuclear industry.
World’s largest wind turbines go on line
19 May 2017
The largest wind turbines in the world have begun generating electricity off the coast of Liverpool.
Fossil fuel lobby could be forced to declare interests
18 May 2017
A push from developing countries to force fossil fuel lobbyists taking part in the Bonn climate talks to declare their conflicts of interest has won a significant battle against resistance from countries including New Zealand.
Indian coal plant gets $150m to sit idle
18 May 2017
An Indian coal-fired power plant is to be paid $150 million this financial year for generators that are sitting idle.
China (and others) pay for coal plants in Africa
17 May 2017
New coal plants in Africa are largely being paid for by China and developed countries that are turning away from the technology at home.
Vegan football club dines out on success
16 May 2017
Forest Green Rovers, a club based in Stroud, western England, and believed to be the first well-known “vegan” football club, hit the big time on Sunday after winning a Wembley play-off to reach the Football League in England for the first time.
Local govt bill 'completely misses the point,' passes first reading
Fri 18 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government’s bill making changes to the Local Government Act to "refocus" councils on their core functions passed its first reading in Parliament last night, with critics saying it will set back climate resilience.
Expert rejects farmers call to ditch green investment framework
Thu 17 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Scrapping a proposed 'green' finance taxonomy before work on it is even finished would risk New Zealand being left behind in the transition to more sustainable systems, according to an expert.
Mangroves' overlooked climate role
30 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand’s mangrove forests are pulling tens of thousands of tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere each year, yet their climate benefits remain unrecognised in national emissions reporting.
How flying can be a climate solution
16 Jun 2025
By Paul Callister and Robert McLachlan - Planetary Ecology | How can aviation contribute to tackling climate change when no practicable technology-based solutions are on the horizon?
Foresters seek time; end to using ETS as a land use tool
Wed 16 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Production and carbon forestry owners have begged the environment select committee to at least give the sector more time to come up with workable rules for legislation intended to cap forest planting on farmland.
NZ Post drops science-based climate target
8 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | NZ Post has dropped its science-based emissions reduction target of 42% by 2030 with no plans to replace it.
