New Zealand: Energy
Support for new energy vital for growth
31 Aug 2015
Renewable energy support schemes such as feed-in tariffs, quota obligations, capital grants, and subsidies, will continue to be instrumental in promoting Europe’s renewable energy industry growth by 2020, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.
China’s carbon count is not as high as feared
24 Aug 2015
The use of poor-quality coal in Chinese power plants means that the carbon dioxide emissions of the world’s biggest polluter are 10% less than previously thought.
Renewables raise challenge to coal in power league
24 Aug 2015
Wind, solar and other renewable sources of clean energy are now second only to coal in generating the world’s electricity.
Time to tap an underused energy source: wasted heat
24 Aug 2015
Millions of people worldwide can’t afford to keep their homes warm, but few realise the heat wasted in our energy system could provide the answer.
Contact to close gas-fired Auckland plant
17 Aug 2015
The 400MW Otahuhu B gas-fired power station will close from the end of next month.
Clouds gather over China’s solar power industry
17 Aug 2015
The recent turmoil in China’s stock market has sent shockwaves through the country’s corporate sector, including its mighty solar power industry which in recent years has grown to dominate the world market.
Wind and solar surge sends EU emissions tumbling
17 Aug 2015
Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions are falling fast, mainly because of the rapid spread of the wind turbines and solar panels that are replacing fossil fuels for electricity generation.
Clean Power Plan will have a real impact
17 Aug 2015
The United States Government’s recently announced Clean Power Plan will have a negative impact on the country’s coal industry, with the potential loss of up to 60 Gigawatts of coal power capacity by 2020, according to an analyst with research and consulting firm GlobalData.
India lets loose the reins of its energy horses
17 Aug 2015
India’s “seven horses of energy” electricity sector transformation is gathering pace, with far-reaching ramifications for renewable energy development and the structural decline of seaborne thermal coal, says a new report.
Why coal commitment will cost Fonterra dearly
10 Aug 2015
Fonterra’s determination to keep using coal is exposing it to future high carbon costs, an international energy expert is warning.
Revolutionary fence is set to trap the sea’s power
10 Aug 2015
A British company has announced plans for an array of unique marine turbines that can operate in shallower and slower-moving water than current designs.
Chinese ride to the rescue of Europe’s nuclear industry
10 Aug 2015
The Chinese are planning to come to the rescue of a European nuclear industry so short of money that it cannot build any new stations without outside help.
Why Tiwai stands between us and 100% renewable energy
3 Aug 2015
New Zealand could have 100 per cent renewable electricity generation within a decade if the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter closed.
Caygill sets out on new energy mission
3 Aug 2015
Former Finance Minister David Caygill is to chair the BusinessNZ Energy Council – a group of energy companies whose mission is to secure a sustainable energy future for New Zealand.
Fossil fuel industry still winning the investment war
3 Aug 2015
The campaign to convince investors not to use their money to support the extraction and use of fossil fuels is failing to gain enough converts, experts say.
Good practice makes perfect sense for emissions cuts
3 Aug 2015
European researchers investigating ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the internationally agreed safety level have arrived at the good news that we can just about achieve it – provided all nations show the political will to do so.
Why cities are a rare good news story in climate change
27 Jul 2015
The visit last week of 65 mayors to the Vatican to discuss climate change, among other things, reflects the central role of cities in debates that for too long took place only at the global and national level.
Norway pumps up 'green battery' plan for Europe
27 Jul 2015
Norway is hoping to become the “green battery of Europe” by using its hydropower plants to provide instant extra electricity if production from wind and solar power sources in other countries fade.
Big money in reforming fossil fuel subsidies
27 Jul 2015
Reforming fossil fuel subsidies could release enough money to finance universal access to water, sanitation, and electricity in many countries, as well as helping to cut global greenhouse-gas emissions, new research in Nature Climate Change suggests.
Recession cut US emissions, not falling coal use
27 Jul 2015
Between 2007 and 2013 emissions of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels burnt in the US fell significantly − by about 11% − and many analysts credited this to ac hange from coal to natural gas in electricity production.
Japan signs up for geothermal classes
20 Jul 2015
New Zealand and Japan will work together on geothermal energy research.
EPA Clean Power Plan reenergises US climate policy debate
20 Jul 2015
For the first time this United States summer, the nation’s fleet of existing power plants will face limits on carbon dioxide emissions.
Don't ignore us, bioenergy lobby tells Government
13 Jul 2015
The Government is ignoring the potential for emissions reduction from renewable heat energy, the Bioenergy Association says.
Fossil fuel firms fail to report climate risks
13 Jul 2015
Fossil fuel companies operating in the UK are accused by a financial monitoring group of a “staggering” disregard for their obligation to acknowledge the risks which climate change poses to them and their investors.
Science breaks new ground in converting coal ash from pollutant to useful products
13 Jul 2015
South Africa has large coal reserves. It mainly burns coal to produce electricity at 13 existing coal-burning power plants, situated mainly in Mpumalanga, a province in the country’s east.
Tesla batteries might power your home but stored fuels will still run the country
6 Jul 2015
Although Tesla’s Powerwall battery storage is likely to be a disruptive force for electrical energy systems around the world, it is not going to supplant the major forms of electrical energy storage anytime soon, and is ill-suited to storing energy over longer timeframes such as between seasons.
It looks like carbon capture is going down down the tubes
6 Jul 2015
One of the much-heralded solutions to climate change which its supporters believe could enable the world to continue to burn fossil fuels looks likely to be a failure.
Indian developer might junk giant Australian coal project
29 Jun 2015
India’s Adani Group is likely to withdraw from the $16 billion Australian coal mining project, touted as the world's largest, due to concerns over softening international coal prices, relentless attacks by environmentalists and delay in regulatory clearances.
Renewable energy redoubles its global reach
29 Jun 2015
A significant threshold has been crossed by renewable energy as analysts report that the sectorʼs size last year reached double the level it was at just 10 years earlier.
Solar fuels: how planes and cars could be powered by the sun
29 Jun 2015
Most people are aware of solar photovoltaics that generate electricity and solar panels that produce hot water. But there is another thrust of solar research: turning sunlight into liquid fuels.
How Rwanda’s clinics have gone off-grid and on to renewable energy
29 Jun 2015
Rwanda is located in the poorest region in the world, sub-Saharan Africa. Despite this, it is making advances with off-grid renewable energy solutions for rural areas that could be a model for similar economies.
EcoStore pioneer is still setting the pace after 20 years
15 Jun 2015
When he started, people thought EcoStore founder Malcolm Rands was mad for tying his business up in tight ethical standards.
European power is slipping away from King Coal
15 Jun 2015
Coal, the muscle that for two centuries powered Europe’s economic dominance of the world, is steadily losing its grip as cleaner fuels take its place and energy efficiency cuts electricity consumption, according to new analysis.
Could one million smart pool pumps store renewable energy better than giant batteries?
15 Jun 2015
As more wind and solar energy comes online, the people who run the power grid have a problem: how do they compensate for the variable nature of the sun and wind?
China sets the pace in solar installations
15 Jun 2015
China will remain the world’s largest market for annual solar photovoltaic installations, a new report says.
Climate targets not a cost, says bioenergy bloc
8 Jun 2015
The Government should see its climate change targets as an opportunity for New Zealand business and the economy, not a cost, the BioEnergy Association says.
Africa’s advocates say fossil fuel subsidies must go
8 Jun 2015
Developed countries should rapidly end subsidies for fossil fuels, says a group established to argue for equitable and sustainable development for Africa.
Networking good way to make wind power reliable
2 Jun 2015
Researchers say they’ve figured out how to make wind power reliable.
Shell can’t afford to wait until 2050 to adapt its business to climate change
2 Jun 2015
Shell’s recent AGM was tumultuous. Shareholders voted overwhelmingly for the company to report on whether its activities were compatible with promised government action on climate change.
Take care with electric vehicles, says academic
2 Jun 2015
Converting New Zealand’s car fleet to electricity needs careful management, a Canterbury University researcher says.
New energy policy needed as nuclear giants take a hit
2 Jun 2015
The European nuclear industry, led by France, seems to be in terminal decline as a result of the cancellation of a new Finnish reactor, technical faults in stations already under construction, and severe financial problems.
Brazil leads South American renewable energy charge
25 May 2015
Brazil will spearhead renewable energy development in South America to 2017, as the continent changes its energy profile.
Tesla's battery power could give Nevada a $100b jolt
18 May 2015
The new Tesla Motors factory being built outside Sparks, Nevada, was already on tap to produce 500,000 electric car batteries and become the largest battery factory in the world when chief executive Elon Musk announced last month it would also produce the potentially revolutionary home battery, the Powerwall.
Oceans generate rising tide of renewables ideas
18 May 2015
A race is on worldwide to harness the tides and waves for electrical power, with more than 100 different devices being tested by companies hoping to make a commercial breakthrough.
Why falling oil prices should not undermine investment in green energy
18 May 2015
When the price of crude oil dropped from US$110 a barrel in mid-2014 to below US$50 by January 2015, there were fears that it would destroy the “green revolution”.
Islands switch to solar power
18 May 2015
Foreign Minister Murray McCully and Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna have officially opened solar arrays on the islands of Penrhyn and Manihiki this week, and marked the completion of the Cook Islands Solar Project.
We've got the chance to turn green into gold
11 May 2015
New Zealand could turn “green into gold” by capitalising on emerging clean technologies and showing leadership on climate change.
'PM's bank' pulls back from coal investments
11 May 2015
A company in which Prime Minister John Key is a shareholder is reducing coal investment because of the risk of financial exposure.
It's simple, says action group, coal's day is done
4 May 2015
Just five solar-power installation companies could create as many jobs as the Rotowaru coal mine, a new analysis says.
Southern project shows way with wood-fired boilers
4 May 2015
A pilot project to encourage industrial users to switch to wood-fired boilers could cut greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 200,000 tonnes.
Growth, energy and climate in focus at Trans-Tasman bilateral talks
Today 11:00am
Trans-Tasman climate cooperation was one of the themes at the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum, with senior government officials and business leaders from both sides of the ditch meeting in Canberra this week.
International scientists slam NZ govt's proposed approach to methane
13 Aug 2025
New Zealand's proposed approach to methane emissions has again been attacked by international climate scientists, with a new study saying the attempt to redefine climate target-setting by livestock-exporting countries undermines the transition to a sustainable and equitable food system
Vector hits emissions reduction goal five years early
Today 11:00am
By Liz Kivi | Auckland lines company Vector has met its 2030 emissions reduction reduction target five years early, more than halving its direct emissions, and crediting innovation and a laser-focus for its success in a hard-to-abate sector.
Air NZ declares surprisingly low SAF prices
Wed 3 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand is able to source sustainable aviation fuel at between 1.5 and 2.5 times the price of conventional fossil fuels used for flying, all sourced from the US.
Forest carbon stores massive blind spot - study
Thu 4 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Aotearoa New Zealand’s planted forests hold significant deep soil organic carbon — with over half of it stored below 30 cm, and much of it over 1,000 years old.
XRB consults on delaying climate reporting requirements
Thu 4 Sep 2025
The External Reporting Board is proposing a further two years relief for companies to adopt anticipated financial impacts reporting and scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions reporting and assurance.
