New Zealand: Energy
Chile has so much solar energy it's giving it away
3 Jun 2016
Chile’s solar industry has expanded so quickly that it’s giving electricity away for free.
SOUTHERN COMFORT: Southland sets the new-energy style
2 Jun 2016
New Zealand needs regional emissions reduction targets as well as a national target, our southern- most region says.
Energy solutions need leaders, money and ideas
2 Jun 2016
Solving the energy trilemma requires policy leadership and investment in new technologies, world energy leaders are being told.
Renewable energy smashes global records
2 Jun 2016
An upsurge in new wind, solar and hydro plants and capacity saw renewable energy smash global records last year, according to a report on new supply.
German leader agrees to put brakes on green energy
2 Jun 2016
German chancellor Angela Merkel has hammered out a deal with state premiers on the latest reform to Germany’s renewable energy law aimed at curbing the costs and controlling the speed of the roll-out of green power sources.
New York to cut emissions by 100%
1 Jun 2016
Lawmakers in New York have introduced a bill aimed at cutting the state's greenhouse gas emissions by 100 per cent by 2050.
How fracking can contribute to climate change
31 May 2016
Leakage of natural gas from drilling and pipework means more methane is entering the atmosphere.
Consultants reply to Solarcity crticism of report
30 May 2016
Last week, solar energy company Solarcity criticised a report by Concept Consulting, which said switching to electric vehicles would do more to cut greenhouse gas emissions in New Zealand than installing solar panels on roofs would do. Today, Concept Consulting director SIMON COATES replies:
Exxon chief: Ending oil production not acceptable
30 May 2016
Rex Tillerson, the boss of oil giant ExxonMobil, said cutting oil production was “not acceptable for humanity” as he fought off shareholders’ and activists’ attempts to force the company to fully acknowledge the impact of climate change on the environment and Exxon’s future profits.
Why energy crops have been a major flop with farmers
30 May 2016
Whatever happened to energy crops? A decade ago, the UK authorities confidently expected farmers to devote swaths of land to growing the likes of short-rotation willow and poplar and perennial grasses.
Trump: First on fossil fuels, last on climate change
30 May 2016
Donald Trump has vowed that if elected president he would dismantle the Paris global treaty and maximise the production of coal, oil and natural gas.
World of clean energy soaks up 8 million workers
27 May 2016
More than 8.1 million people worldwide are now employed by the renewable energy industry – a 5 per cent increase from last year.
Exxon rejects shareholder climate demands
27 May 2016
Following the recommendation of the ExxonMobil board of directors, shareholders voted against six resolutions that would have addressed climate change at the company's annual shareholder meeting in Dallas yesterday.
China solar has coal in its sights
26 May 2016
Declining costs in China’s solar industry could allow the government to reduce prices offered to photovoltaic developers by more than a third by 2020 and see plants powered by the sun become competitive with coal within a decade.
US now has 27.2 gigawatts of solar energy
26 May 2016
One million solar power installations now dot America's rooftops and landscape, an achievement being hailed as a milestone by advocates of solar energy.
Shell to cut another 2200 jobs
26 May 2016
Royal Dutch Shell is to cut at least another 2,00 jobs, with around 475 of those coming from its UK and Ireland oil and gas production business.
Poland limits where wind farms can be built
26 May 2016
Poland has adopted a new law banning construction of wind farms close to dwellings and hiking project costs in a move which the industry says could hobble the country's move to renewables and away from coal.
Take a hard look at investments, insurers warned
25 May 2016
Insurance companies should be taking a hard look at their exposure to investment in fossil-fuel assets, a new report says.
Fracking makes US top fossil fuels producer
25 May 2016
Thanks to the fracking boom, the US has surpassed Saudi Arabia and Russia to become the world’s leading producer of oil in 2013. The US became the top natural gas producer in 2011, and has led the world in both oil and gas production for four years in a row.
Solar operator slams vested interests in pro-EV report
24 May 2016
A report that says switching to electric vehicles will do more to prevent climate change than would installing solar panels was funded by the big generators and lines companies with a vested interest in keeping solar out of the industry, says the head of an energy company using solar panels to generate power for its customers.
Oil majors tread cautiously toward renewables
24 May 2016
The big oil companies’ on-off affair with renewable energies seems to be back on track.
Coal-giant shareholders vote for disclosure
24 May 2016
Glencore investors have agreed that the largest exporter of coal burned for power should provide more information on risks to its business from growing levels of government legislation to tackle climate change.
Proud Portugal just set a renewable energy record
23 May 2016
Portugal last week set a record for renewable energy use. Through a combination of hydroelectric, solar, and wind power, electricity use in the country was completely covered for four consecutive days.
Indonesia deepens reliance on coal power
20 May 2016
Indonesia, already one of the world’s biggest carbon emitters, plans to build a further 100 coal-fired power stations by 2019.
Europe has high hopes for smart meters
20 May 2016
Europe’s move to replace at least 80 per cent of electricity meters with smart meters could cut greenhouse gas emissions in the region by 9 per cent.
Outcry as Norway opens new areas to exploration
20 May 2016
Norway has warded Arctic drilling licences to 13 oil companies, including in a hitherto unexplored part of the Barents Sea, drawing condemnation from environmental groups.
Energy awards show what the country can do
19 May 2016
Innovations worth 1.2 petajoules of energy and 120,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions were honoured in Auckland last night.
Glad tidings for the potential of sea power
19 May 2016
Two countries with the highest tides in the world, Canada and the UK, both claim to be the world leaders in creating electricity from the tides.
Europe needs independent carbon market regulator
19 May 2016
Europe needs an independent carbon market regulator with clear objectives rather than the current mix of state administrators and the European Commission that has complicated the market, says the chief executive of Total.
Renewables leaving natural gas in the dust
19 May 2016
In the first three months of 2016, the U.S. grid added 18 megawatts of new natural gas generating capacity. It added a whopping 1291MW of new renewables.The renewables were primarily wind (707 MW) and solar (522 MW).
China dominates wind turbine installation
18 May 2016
Nearly half of the new wind turbines installed last year were in China, latest data shows.
It's more bad news for carbon capture
17 May 2016
Coal powered much of the industrial revolution and continues to fuel economic growth in developing nations, including China and India.
Shell creates green energy division
17 May 2016
Shell has established a separate division, New Energies, to invest in renewable and low-carbon power.
Largest floating windfarm to be built off Scotland
17 May 2016
The world’s largest floating windfarm is set to be built off the coast of Scotlandafter its developers were granted a seabed lease yesterday.
Facebook, Microsoft give clean energy a boost
17 May 2016
Facebook and Microsoft are joining forces with environmental groups to promote the development of 60 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2025.
Angry climate campaigners aim at bank coffers
16 May 2016
Climate campaigners are looking to hit banks investing in fossil-fuel operations where it hurts – the bottom line.
Vanadium the ‘beautiful metal’ that stores energy
16 May 2016
An unheralded metal could become a crucial part of the renewables revolution. Vanadium is used in new batteries which can store large amounts of energy almost indefinitely, perfect for remote wind or solar farms.
UK energy from coal hits zero for first time in 100 years
16 May 2016
The amount of electricity generated from coal in the UK has fallen to zero several times in the past week, grid data shows.
How updating office buildings can cut emissions
13 May 2016
Retrofitting New Zealand’s commercial buildings to use less fossil fuel-generated energy could cut greenhouse gas emissions by 666,000 tonnes – equivalent to the methane emissions from 200,000 dairy cows, a Wellington researcher has found.
Shell unveils vision of 2deg energy future
13 May 2016
Shell has published analysis for the first time on what it would take to meet international climate goals.
Carbon emissions rise in study of future energy
12 May 2016
Global carbon dioxide emissions from energy production are likely to rise 34 per cent, or 11 billion tonnes, between 2012 and 2040, says a new report.
Will taxpayers foot the bill for broke coal companies?
12 May 2016
Coal’s share of the US energy market is rapidly plunging. Low-cost fracking-generated natural gas has overtaken the use of coal at America’s power plants.
Solar industry fights lines companies' taxes
9 May 2016
The solar energy industry is fighting back against taxes being imposed by lines companies on customers installing panels on their homes, by taking a case to the Electricity Authority.
Nuclear power plant costs roll onwards and upwards
9 May 2016
Building nuclear power stations is becoming hugely more expensive by the day, but decommissioning old ones might prove to be even more costly.
Oil firms have 10 years to change strategy ... or die
9 May 2016
International oil companies such as Shell and BP must completely change their business model or face a “nasty, brutish and short” end within 10 years, one of Britain’s most influential energy experts has warned.
Better solar cells mean more energy from the sun
6 May 2016
Global demand for energy is increasing by the hour as developing countries move toward industrialisation.
Cut the kindling, Huntly could run on wood
4 May 2016
Converting the Huntly coal-fired power station to run on wood is technically feasible, but expensive.
Japan pays high price for ‘silo’ science
4 May 2016
Lack of scientific co-operation with other countries has cost Japan “trillions of yen” in expensive solar power because the country did not learn from the experience of other countries before rushing to install it, analysts say.
GE wants become big player in offshore wind
4 May 2016
General Electric wants to become a major player in the offshore wind industry and is interested in buying the Areva-Gamesa offshore joint-venture Adwen.
Phasing out fossil fuels more than just a straight swap
3 May 2016
To have any chance of preventing dangerous climate change, the world needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero or even negative by mid-century.
Cuts to climate finance put exports in jeopardy: Lawyers
23 May 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government has halved international climate finance, a move aid organisations describe as “devastating,” and which lawyers say could put our Paris Agreement commitments and export market access at risk.
Controversy around NZ’s methane target hits international press
Tue 3 Jun 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s approach to methane targets has hit international media, with climate scientists from multiple countries penning an open letter warning Prime Minister Christopher Luxon not to weaken methane targets.
Tech alone won’t save us, warns climate expert
Wed 4 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Technology alone won't be enough to reach net zero emissions, environmental psychologist Lorraine Whitmarsh told the Carbon and Energy Professionals conference in Auckland last week.
“It’s not the car – it’s how we move” – EECA
Tue 3 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams| New Zealand’s transport emissions conversation has focused heavily on electric vehicles – but Richard Briggs, group manager, delivery and partnerships at the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, says we’re asking the wrong question.
Fed Farmers launches campaign against carbon forestry
Fri 6 Jun 2025
By Liz Kivi | Federated Farmers has launched what they are calling the ‘Save Our Sheep’ campaign, blaming carbon forestry for declining sheep numbers and calling on the government to urgently review the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Kiwi cleantech companies on the world stage
27 May 2025
Six New Zealand 'cleantech' companies were in Singapore earlier this month, along with a venture capital firm and the MacDiarmid Institute, to meet investors and multinational partners.
