New Zealand: All stories
ETS bill vote talks concentrating on NZ First
1 Jul 2008
Government efforts to get the emissions trading scheme into law before the election are now focused on New Zealand First.
Questions over SOE-funding of ETS reports
1 Jul 2008
Three State-owned enterprises are in the political spotlight for funding reports being used on either side of the lobby campaign on the Government’s emissions trading scheme.
New report: more carbon credits needed to protect native forests
1 Jul 2008
Landowners will clear regenerating forests for exotic forests or farming if the carbon-storage capacity of indigenous trees is not fairly recognised under the emissions trading scheme.
Rio Tinto to get 96.5% more for iron ore - steel price hike predicted
1 Jul 2008
The timber industry is predicting a swing away from steel in heavy construction to more environmentally friendly wood as a result of a deal between Rio Tinto and Chinese steel maker Baosteel which could see a jump in steel prices.
OPINION: CTU economist Peter Conway on the ETS
1 Jul 2008
Some business lobby groups are in full scale attack mode on the Climate Change (Emissions Trading and Renewable Preference) Bill since the National Party withdrew its support for the Bill.
New chief for ETS' administration ministry
1 Jul 2008
The lead ministry in managing the proposed emissions trading system has a new chief executive.
Fonterra hits 15-per-cent energy reduction target
1 Jul 2008
Fonterra has achieved its second major energy efficiency milestone in five years, cutting the amount of energy used to manufacture its products by 15 percent since the 2002/03 season, it says.
Heavy emitters fire more salvoes on ETS
27 Jun 2008
The battle over the emissions trading scheme continues, with big business today launching another salvo aimed at persuading politicians to delay the scheme.
Politicians (well, some of them) talk but ETS deals still not done
27 Jun 2008
Politicians are no closer to a deal to pass the emissions trading scheme, despite weeks of negotiating.
Report underestimates benefits of increased forestry planting, say forest owners
27 Jun 2008
A recent report from the NZ Business Council for Sustainable Development grossly underestimates the potential benefits generated by the forestry sector under the proposed emissions trading scheme, says the forest owners’ association (NZFOA), because the report does not factor in the ongoing and increasing ability of newly-planted forests to sequester carbon.
Contact Energy drops Environment Court appeal against Meridian wind farm
27 Jun 2008
Contact Energy has dropped its Environment Court appeal against Meridian’s Project Hayes wind farm, saying that the issues that prompted its appeal have already been well canvassed during the Trustpower Mahinerangi consent hearings.
Toyoto NZ believes it still has the ‘green’ advantage
27 Jun 2008
Toyota New Zealand still feels it has the edge when it comes to ‘green’ vehicles, despite recent claims by some luxury car manufacturers.
Freight rail seen as way to reduce greenhouse gases
27 Jun 2008
The United States would save billions of gallons of fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by millions of tonnes if freight was shifted from highways to rail, a Senate panel has been told.
ETS bonus: $12b and 10,000 jobs, says report by big business
24 Jun 2008
Passing the emissions trading scheme into law will generate $12.3 billion in investment and nearly 10,000 jobs in the next 10 years, but delaying it could cost 20,000 jobs – mainly in tourism and agriculture, says a report out this afternoon.
New investment, new jobs, new wages, new income
24 Jun 2008
The NZBCSB report into the economic ramifications of passing the ETS before the election says that it will:
Who did the work and who paid?
24 Jun 2008
Two of our major State-owned electricity generators paid for the Business Council for the just-released Sustainable Development report on the ETS.
New reports show multi-billion-dollar impacts of ETS
24 Jun 2008
Politicians debating whether to support the Government’s emissions trading scheme are today being hit with two major reports countering earlier claims that the scheme will cost New Zealand vast amounts of money and jobs.
Pressure builds as minor parties decide where to stand on ETS
24 Jun 2008
The emissions trading bill is top of the agenda for most minor political party caucus meetings today as pressure builds to get the scheme passed before the election.
NZ biodiesel market big enough for everyone, says Solid Energy
24 Jun 2008
Biodiesel produced from a variety of sources has every opportunity to find a market in New Zealand, says Andy Matheson, Solid Energy’s general manager for renewable energy.
No local biofuel under proposed law - manufacturers
24 Jun 2008
Local production of biofuels will be halted by changes to the Biofuels Bill, which came back into Parliament yesterday, say manufacturers.
Palmerston North sells landfill credits to Toyota
24 Jun 2008
The Palmerston North City Council’s sale of 4500 carbon credits from its Awapuni landfill to Toyota New Zealand follows an earlier and pioneering sale of carbon credits to the Austrian Government two years ago.
Genesis starts $100 million entry into carbon market
20 Jun 2008
Electricity giant Genesis Energy will need to surrender $100 million in carbon credits to the Government in 2011 - and executives leave for Europe today on a mission to start buying them.
Carbon exchange chief criticises lack of business and political courage
20 Jun 2008
The chief executive of New Zealand’s carbon trading platform is calling for more courage and leadership to make the most of emissions trading and the opportunities it offers for New Zealand to develop and protect its trade.
Little hope for RMA amendment as it returns to House
20 Jun 2008
A draft law requiring local authorities to consider the greenhouse-gas emissions of new developments as part of Resource Management Act consents is back before Parliament, but seems unlikely to have the numbers.
Solid energy assessing coal-to-transport fuel scheme
20 Jun 2008
Solid Energy is in the assessment phase of a scheme to convert lignite into premium transport fuels.
Tree planting will have little effect on carbon - report
20 Jun 2008
A Ministry for the Environment report predicts forestry’s new planting levels will have a minimal impact on New Zealand’s overall carbon account situation for the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol - regardless of whether afforestation occurs at a rate of zero, 5000 or 20,000ha per annum.
BP enlists NZ in tallow-to-transport fuel refining
20 Jun 2008
BP is turning tallow into biofuels in an Australasian–wide development.
Auckland can cope with increased public transport use
20 Jun 2008
Auckland’s transport network is ready for a big swing to public transport as fuel prices continue to soar to new heights, says the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA)’s communications manager, Sharon Hunter.
Climate change benefactors are nation's top high-tech exporters
20 Jun 2008
The proprietor of New Zealand’s little-known but most-advanced technology manufacturer is also one of this country’s leading philanthropists in the field of climate change research.
Pike River coal manages emissions and looks forward to price increases
20 Jun 2008
Pike River Coal is poised to take advantage of demand from Japan that will double the price of coking coal in the next year alone, says McDouall Stuart which acted as lead manager for Pike River Coal’s 2007 IPO and 2008 rights issue.
Letter to the editor: 'Carbon dioxide pollution'
20 Jun 2008
Noting your story this morning (June 17) about CO2 emissions in China, I can assume, therefore, that no one at Carbon News drinks champagne or other sparkling wines, beer or fizzy drinks, because their bubbles are CO2, and you wouldn't want to be caught drinking a "pollutant" would you?
ETS will deliver $1 billion plus power subsidy for heavy emitters over 10 years
18 Jun 2008
Major industrial emitters are to receive well over a billion dollars in subsidies from ordinary consumers for power they buy over the next ten years.
Extreme low hydro inflows reduces TrustPower's profit outlook
18 Jun 2008
The New Zealand major hydro storage lakes have been as low as 49% and are currently 55% of average for this time of the year and the electricity industry has commenced a nationwide power savings campaign.
Environment Commissioner supports amended ETS bill
18 Jun 2008
New Zealand must implement an Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), says Dr Jan Wright, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. “It’s the most efficient way for New Zealand to adjust to a carbon-constrained future.”
Lights out for the incandescent bulb
18 Jun 2008
The traditional incandescent light bulb is on its way out, as part of a strategy for more energy efficient lighting announced today by Energy Minister David Parker and Government Spokesperson on Energy Efficiency and Conservation Jeanette Fitzsimons.
Marine leeches provide clues on climate change
18 Jun 2008
Elusive marine leeches in Antarctica are the focus of study on how climate change is affecting vulnerable fish species.
Peters key as Clark counts ETS heads and comes up one short
17 Jun 2008
Inter-party lobbying has begun in earnest on the emissions trading scheme, with National and Labour wooing the minor parties and a planned meeting between the Greens and New Zealand First cancelled as Winston Peters takes control of his party’s position.
Steel-maker going to Government over ETS
17 Jun 2008
New Zealand Steel is heading for talks with the Government on the emissions trading scheme, saying that it still has serious concerns about the medium-to-long-term impact the scheme could have on its Glenbrook steel mill.
ETS amendments tinkering around the edges for forestry sector
17 Jun 2008
Forest owners will take little comfort from proposed amendments to the Climate Change (Emissions Tradings and Renewable Preference) Bill which were reported back from the finance and expenditure committee yesterday.
Government forestry policies costly mistake, say owners
17 Jun 2008
New Zealand’s national carbon accounts could be up to $1.5 billion worse off in the second commitment period of the Kyoto protocol than if the Government’s policies had encouraged levels of new plantings consistent with those of the 1990s, according to financial modelling by Peter Clark, climate change spokesman for the New Zealand Forest Owners’ Association and chief executive of PF Olsen Ltd.
Big numbers scupper Kiwi electric car ambitions
17 Jun 2008
A breathtaking UK costing for getting an electric vehicle to the marketplace has thwarted New Zealand entrepreneur and engineer Ian Macrae’s plans to manufacture electric vehicles here.
Environmental sceptics overwhelmingly politicised, says study
17 Jun 2008
A review of environmental skepticism literature from the past 30 years has found that the vast majority of skeptics, often identified as independent, are directly linked to politically oriented, conservative think tanks.
ETS back in Parliament
16 Jun 2008
The emissions trading scheme is back before Parliament, with new proposals to widen the allocation of free credits and to allow lower-emitters into the scheme.
National's full minitory report on ETS bill
16 Jun 2008
National has released its miniority report on the ETS bill.
The Bill in full
16 Jun 2008
The 328 page emissios trading bill has been reported back to Parliament.
Business Council: Changes soften way for ETS, reach limit of public acceptance
16 Jun 2008
Recommended changes to the emissions trading bill as reported back will protect New Zealand industry from any unfair offshore competition and probably push assistance to major emitters to the limit of public acceptance
ACT: Don't recycle the bill, dump it
16 Jun 2008
ACT Leader Rodney Hide today labelled the Emissions Trading Scheme tabled in Parliament a costly mistake that will costs jobs and undermine New Zealand's standard of living.
ETS uncertainty deterring large InterCity investment
13 Jun 2008
InterCity is frustrated that New Zealand’s proposed emissions trading scheme (ETS) will act as a disincentive for it to reduce emissions and continue to operate a low emissions fleet.
Telling report appears on EU scheme on eve of NZ ETS bill debate
13 Jun 2008
The EU emissions trading scheme works “surprisingly well” and has little or no negative impact on the overall European economy, a new Massachusetts Institute of Technology – Sloan management School study shows.
Big-spending business votes to buy green, says country can't risk going slow on climate change
13 Jun 2008
New Zealand can't afford to run the strategic risks involved in delaying climate change management - "simply to placate those who must adjust most, or resist adjustment”, business people in Auckland were told yesterday.
Local govt shake-up risks weakened environmental outcomes – Commissioner
Fri 27 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s push to simplify local government is "deeply flawed" and has been launched without a clear understanding of which functions must remain regional, according to the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
Funding first: Genesis reinforces the balance sheet
Today 12:00pm
Genesis Energy’s $400 million equity raise landed alongside a record first half, but the capital decision rather than the earnings headline is the more revealing signal about how the company intends to navigate the next phase of the build cycle.
Govt's solar on farms initiative to cut costs, boost resilience
17 Feb 2026
Farms across Aotearoa will begin installing solar panels and battery systems as part of a government-backed demonstration programme designed to test whether on-farm renewable energy can reduce electricity costs and improve energy security for the food and fibre sector.
Annual emissions fell to lowest in 15 years in Sept 2025
5 Feb 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions fell to their lowest annual total in the year to September 2025 since records began 2010, according to Statistics New Zealand data published this morning.
Air NZ joins Marsden Point SAF project
Tue 3 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand has quietly added its name to a consortium exploring the viability of green hydrogen production for sustainable aviation fuel at Channel Infrastructure’s Marsden Point energy hub.
Tairāwhiti needs proper Govt support to heal the land – not empty announcements for political optics
24 Feb 2026
OPINION: The Government’s answer to Tairāwhiti’s severe erosion crisis – that the region apply for modest, contestable funding rounds – while rejecting the region's own land transition business case, leaves our long-term resilience hanging in the balance, writes Manu Caddie.
Kiwi startup takes on global plastic pollution
12 Feb 2026
A New Zealand startup is launching what it says is the world’s first plastic-free effervescent drink tablet, with the ambitious aim of eliminating bottled beverages to reduce global plastic pollution.
