Topics tagged with 'Energy'
Why farming chief is turning his back on $30,000
16 Apr 2010
Federated Farmers boss Don Nicolson says he’s not interested in claiming carbon credits for his forest.
Three green stocks that could double your money
16 Apr 2010
By Jeff Siegel.- Every year, as Earth Day noisily approaches, the traffic to our site increases dramatically. And with that traffic comes an avalanche of e-mails and questions.
Senators book Earth Day for new energy plan
16 Apr 2010
Senators working on an energy plan for the United States say they are on track to release their proposals on Earth Day, April 22.
Coal the fuel of the future, Congress told
16 Apr 2010
Executives from the world's largest coal companies told Congress yesterday their industry is providing the fuel of the future.
Europe eyes low-carbon energy without risks
16 Apr 2010
Europe can move to low-carbon energy sources without risking reliable supply or increasing bills for consumers, according to a new report.
Indecision could fuel huge power price rises
16 Apr 2010
Australians’ power bills are set to treble by 2020 under government policies, yet the country will still fail to meet the government's most cautious emissions targets, one of the country's biggest generators has warned.
Government puts its own water forum under threat, says Labour
16 Apr 2010
The Government's own initiative through its Land and Water Forum to get the balance right on freshwater management is under threat because of its legislation axing Environment Canterbury, says Labour's water spokesman Brendon Burns.
Solid Energy lawyers check out free credits
9 Apr 2010
Solid Energy is investigating whether it qualifies for free credits under the emissions trading scheme.
Tokyo kicks off Asia’s first trading scheme
9 Apr 2010
Plans for a national Japanese emissions trading scheme might still be mired in confusion, but that has not stopped Tokyo winning the race to launch Asia's first carbon trading initiative.
Washington simmers over proposed US fuel tax
9 Apr 2010
A row is brewing in Washington over whether revenue raised through a proposed tax on road fuel should be spent on low carbon projects.
EU carbon auctions to limit pain for exchanges
9 Apr 2010
A plan to auction European Union carbon-dioxide allowances for the third phase of the bloc’s emissions trading market will limit the “negative impact” on existing exchanges and brokers, the regulator said.
Low-carbon Scotland eyes 60,000 green jobs
9 Apr 2010
About 60,000 green jobs could be created in Scotland over the next decade by low-carbon industries, according to the Scottish government.
Where the real investment action is in off-shore energy
9 Apr 2010
By Sam Hopkins.- A week after Obama's offshore drilling announcement, debate is running at full steam — even if new exploration and production haven't started
Insulation rate high through summer, says Brownlie
9 Apr 2010
The warm summer months have failed to dent demand for the government's Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart scheme, Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee said.
Govt stays silent over future of ETS
1 Apr 2010
The Government appears to have gone to ground over rumours it is considering postponing the entry of heavy emitters into the emissions trading scheme.
Cleantech investment: the numbers
1 Apr 2010
By Nick Hodge.- If you're a cleantech investor, perhaps the release of 2009 investment and installation data has something to do with your improving sentiment. I know it does mine.
Kiwis sticking to green values, despite recession
1 Apr 2010
Politicians ignore New Zealanders' concerns about the environment at their peril, says the Business Council for Sustainable Development.
Climate change faces the trillion-dollar question
1 Apr 2010
Political and business leaders gather in London today to try to revive the world's faltering challenge to global warming.
Obama changes mind on offshore oil drilling
1 Apr 2010
US President Barack Obama has unveiled a controversial plan to extend drilling for oil and gas off America's coasts.
US oil company paid sceptics, says report
1 Apr 2010
A little-known, privately owned US oil company has been named as the paymaster of global warming sceptics in the US and Europe.
Repentant Pachauri slips into neutral
1 Apr 2010
The outspoken chairman of the UN’s climate change body is to adopt a neutral advisory role and has agreed to stop making statements demanding new taxes and other radical policies on cutting emissions.
Coal users count the cost - but how much?
26 Mar 2010
Coal users are about to find out just how much carbon could cost them.
Why Gull is happy to use NZ emissions scheme
26 Mar 2010
Gull Energy says the New Zealand emissions trading scheme is a good dry run for what might happen in Australia.
KiwiRail on track to operating green
26 Mar 2010
KiwiRail is out to make the most of its natural advantage as an environmentally friendly transport operator.
UK to set up green investment bank
26 Mar 2010
The UK government will set up green investment bank with £2bn of equity to fund low-carbon transport and energy schemes
UN launches global gas emissions calculator
26 Mar 2010
The United Nations has launched the first common system of calculating the amount of greenhouse gases produced in a given city.
Meridian to mark Earth Hour
26 Mar 2010
The country’s biggest electricity generator will be turning off the lights at its own premises this coming Saturday as it marks Earth Hour 2010.
Europe shambles could boost value of NZ credits
19 Mar 2010
The value of New Zealand Kyoto credits could rise on the back of a European scandal over recycled CERs.
NZ pioneer sells first overseas clean-tech rights
19 Mar 2010
A New Zealand company has just sold the first overseas licensing rights for its clean-tech energy and communications technology.
Obama looks at carbon trading shortcut
19 Mar 2010
The Obama administration is considering a carbon-trading system under existing law if the US Congress doesn't pass cap-and-trade legislation that allows companies to buy and sell the right to pollute, a US Environmental Protection Agency official said.
UK claims carbon capture will make 100,000 jobs
19 Mar 2010
The UK's carbon capture and storage (CCS) sector will be able to sustain 100,000 jobs by 2030 and generate up to £6.5 billion a year, the Government has claimed.
Battle over California climate law takes shape
19 Mar 2010
The campaign to put suspension of California's climate change law before voters in November started taking shape this week as warring parties revealed key sources of funding and traded barbs over the nature of their financial support.
Los Angeles launches green tax on electricity
19 Mar 2010
The city of Los Angeles is introducing a carbon reduction surcharge that will raise $170 million to fight climate change.
UK companies race to stock up on smart meters
19 Mar 2010
British technology companies attribute a boom in sales of smart meters to preparations for the government's Carbon Reduction Commitment energy efficiency scheme (CRC), which comes into force next month.
Watchdog rules ads overstate climate change risk
19 Mar 2010
Two UK Government adverts which used nursery rhymes to raise awareness of climate change have been banned for overstating the risks, a watchdog has announced.
Time to stop pointing fingers, says Maldives
19 Mar 2010
The climate change debate should be reframed in economic and security terms ahead of a year-end UN summit in Mexico seeking a binding climate deal, the president of the Maldives says.
World watches for a green world cup in South Afica
19 Mar 2010
The international community is hoping that hosting the world’s largest sporting event will have a positive impact on South Africa’s green energy projects.
ETS first step will push inflation, says bank
12 Mar 2010
The entry of the first wave of emitters into the emissions trading scheme will push up inflation, the Reserve Bank predicts.
Report lists 10 ‘fat cats’ getting rich from carbon
12 Mar 2010
Windfall profits from Europe’s system for trading industrial carbon quotas could discourage big regional polluters from doing anything to curb emissions.
China and India sign, but keep climate stand
12 Mar 2010
China said it will not deviate from its stand on climate change even after it gave qualified approval to the Copenhagen climate accord this week.
Vietnam to get $790m climate change funding
12 Mar 2010
Vietnam has received $790 million in pledges from donor countries and international organisations to devise measures to cope with climate change and curb carbon emissions.
Government (slowly) gets green-tech message
5 Mar 2010
The idea of a public/private taskforce to develop a New Zealand clean-tech strategy seems set to go before Cabinet.
Marks and Spencer’s big green plan sends a message to Kiwi businesses
5 Mar 2010
A bold new bid by Marks and Spencer to become the world’s most sustainable retailer by 2015 sends an important signal to New Zealand businesses in the export supply chain, says a business lobby group.
Big Oil asks Senate for carbon fee on industry
5 Mar 2010
Key United States senators are weighing a request from Big Oil to levy a carbon fee on the industry rather than wrap it into a sweeping cap-and-trade system that covers most of the nation’s economy.
Britain plans soft loans for home efficiency
5 Mar 2010
British households will be able to take out soft loans to improve the efficiency of their homes, under a new proposed law to fight climate change and cut fuel poverty.
Houses with low energy efficiency will lose value
5 Mar 2010
British homes with low energy efficiency will lose value under government plans to intervene in the property market to help to cut greenhouse gas emissions from homes by a third by 2020.
Uncertainty dries up Aussie carbon market
5 Mar 2010
The carbon market in Australia has come to a complete halt since the Labor Government announced last May that it would delay the introduction of emissions trading.
Others dither, but NZ certain about ETS
26 Feb 2010
The Government says it is committed to pressing ahead with the emissions trading scheme, despite uncertainty over whether two of our major trading partners will adopt cap-and-trade schemes.
US no wiser as Obama chats up business leaders
26 Feb 2010
US climate experts and the energy industry were no wiser about how Barack Obama will manage the country’s greenhouse gas emissions after the president spoke to top CEOs yesterday.
Aussie trading scheme bogs down again
26 Feb 2010
The Australian government's emissions trading scheme is again bogged down in parliament and now might not go to a vote in the Senate until May.
Govt unveils National Adaptation Framework
Thu 16 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Minister of Climate Change Simon Watts has revealed the first actions under New Zealand’s National Adaptation Framework, which sets out the Government's approach to the rising risks from natural hazards such as floods and storms.
All carrot, no stick for farmers on methane
Fri 17 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | COMMENT: The abandonment of methane emissions pricing and the adoption of a weaker target is effectively the last nail in the coffin of the historic cross-parliamentary consensus embedded in the Zero Carbon Act 2019.
NZ needs to be part of a regional SAF strategy: Z, Air NZ
9 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand needs to be part of a regional strategic approach to sourcing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with domestic production less the aim than ensuring access to the fuel from one of a number of strategically positioned bio-refineries around the world.
Air NZ inks deal for its first internationally verified carbon credits
9 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Air New Zealand has committed to buying 8000 tonnes of carbon removals by 2030, in partnership with local native forest investment platform My Native Forest.
NZ not 'holding the line' on wilding pine management – experts
Wed 15 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand is no longer “holding the line” against invasive threats, with the country’s scale, remoteness and rugged terrain making control costly and complex, one expert has said ahead of this week's Wilding Pines Conference.
Researchers say sealing old oil wells with bio-oil from crop waste is a dual carbon-removal solution
19 Sep 2025
A new analysis shows that oil made from corn husks, wood chips, and other waste could plug greenhouse gas-belching abandoned oil wells while sequestering carbon for about $152 per ton.
Broker predicts all this year’s carbon auctions will fail
10 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Marex New Zealand is forecasting that the government will sell no ‘pollution permits’ at the NZU auctions this year, with a significant gap continuing between secondary market prices and this year’s $68 auction floor price.
UN agency says CO2 levels hit record high last year, causing more extreme weather
Fri 17 Oct 2025
Heat-trapping carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere jumped by the highest amount on record last year, soaring to a level not seen in human civilisation and “turbo-charging” the Earth’s climate and causing more extreme weather.
Will govt’s light touch approach lead to higher carbon prices?
3 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Carbon market watchers are hoping the government’s plan for the electricity sector will eventually lead to higher carbon prices, with the secondary market still trading sideways for the longest time in its history.
Electricity to remain in ETS
1 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The Government has rejected Frontier Economics' recommendation that electricity should be removed from the Emissions Trading Scheme.
The merchants of doubt are back
3 Sep 2025
OPINION: If you don’t follow climate policy closely, you might not know that the Trump administration is launching an effort to overturn one of the most fundamental pillars of American climate policy.
Milestone for NZ Steel electrification
10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | NZ Steel has passed an installation milestone for its new electric arc furnace, which will reduce emissions from the Glenbrook steel mill site by as much as one megatonne (1Mt) a year.
UN limits staff at COP30 climate summit over accommodation concerns
19 Sep 2025
High hotel prices for Brazil's COP30 climate summit in November have prompted the United Nations to urge its staff to limit attendance, while government delegations are still scrambling to find rooms within their budgets.
From nuisance to crisis: New report on pest wasps In Aotearoa
24 Sep 2025
Media release: Moths and Butterflies NZ Trust | Just published is the Final Report of the Pest Wasps Survey carried out by the Moths and Butterflies of NZ Trust (MBNZT) offering a comprehensive look at New Zealanders’ awareness, experiences, and attitudes toward wasps and the growing ecological, health, and social issues associated with them.
Difficult trade-offs ahead for climate adaptation
Fri 17 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | While climate impacts are already here, bringing the urgent need to accelerate effective adaptation now, the Government's newly minted adaptation framework still leaves important questions unanswered about who will pay.
NZ marine heatwaves could double in intensity under high-emissions pathway
Thu 16 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show marine heatwaves will grow more intense around the North Island and more frequent around the South Island as the climate warms – raising risks for fisheries, aquaculture, coastal ecosystems and tourism.
World falling far behind deforestation goals with farms and fires driving loss, report says
Wed 15 Oct 2025
The report said the world permanently lost 8.1 million hectares (20 million acres) of forest, an area about the size of England, in 2024 alone.
‘Damp squib’ – Govt energy plan slammed for locking in fossil fuels
2 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Critics across business, climate groups and the opposition say the Government’s electricity reforms duck structural change, double down on LNG and gas, and offer little relief for soaring power prices – warning of an “expensive white elephant", deeper energy poverty and a missed chance to scale renewables.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
Climate investment is only growth opportunity of 21st century, says leading economist
Wed 15 Oct 2025
Investment in climate action is the economic growth story of the 21st century, while growth fuelled by fossil fuels is futile because the damage it causes ends in self-destruction, the economist Nicholas Stern has said.
Where’s Watts? Climate Minister no-show at climate conference
Thu 16 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Opposition parties have slammed the Climate Change Minister’s failure to front up to a major international conference in Christchurch, saying it shows that climate adaptation is a low priority for the National Party.
Climate credibility gap widening for Aussie firms
1 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Australian public companies’ climate change commitments are in retreat, reflecting difficulty in achieving stated targets and increased fossil use, but not because of any pressure to make less effort, according to a study of major companies’ ESG reporting.
Coal imports up 650%
12 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams and Liz Kivi | Coal imports are up 650% as generators stockpile the most polluting fossil fuel ahead of next winter.
Hiringa eyes green methanol plant near Whanganui
29 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Green hydrogen pioneer Hiringa Energy is deep in planning to develop an “eight-to-nine figure” methanol plant near Whanganui, using a combination of biomass and hydrogen produced using renewable energy.
Study warns climate leadership falling short in NZ
1 Oct 2025
Media release - Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland | Research suggests New Zealand’s climate leadership is falling short, with current adaptation efforts focused on property and cost-cutting rather than protecting communities.
Will NZ walk away from the Paris Agreement?
20 Dec 2024
By Geoff Bertram | COMMENT: Unless the government can find very cheap offshore mitigation, the temptation to walk away from its Paris Agreement obligations may well be too strong to resist for a coalition government focused on fiscal austerity.
Judge dismisses suit by young climate activists against Trump’s pro-fossil fuel policies
Fri 17 Oct 2025
Plaintiffs had ‘overwhelming evidence’ of climate crisis but a court injunction would be ‘unworkable’, ruling says.
'Non-negotiable' – EU carbon pricing to hit Kiwi exporters, expert warns
11 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | High carbon exports will inevitably face a high carbon tax at the EU border, possibly in the next five years, and high methane agricultural products might not be exempt, an international expert told a local audience yesterday.
Deep sea mining threatens sharks, rays and ghost sharks
6 Oct 2025
Mining the world’s deep seas for metals will likely threaten many species of sharks, rays and chimaeras (ghost sharks), according to researchers.
Govt promises ‘earlier action’ in response to Commission’s warning climate targets at risk
Fri 17 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government says it will “explore opportunities for earlier action” ahead of the third Emissions Reduction Plan, and has committed to looking at ways to stop the system of free carbon credits for industrial polluters from disincentivising industrial decarbonisation.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
‘Weird and sad’ – Tuvalu Climate Minister condemns NZ halving methane target
Wed 15 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Dr Maina Talia, Tuvalu’s Minister for Home Affairs, Climate Change, and Environment, says he’s surprised at New Zealand’s decision to weaken its target for reducing methane emissions – and is planning to take up the issue with his counterpart Climate Minister Simon Watts this week.
NZ’s biggest ever climate meeting kicks off
Tue 14 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The world's largest climate adaptation conference kicked off in Christchurch yesterday, with nearly 2000 attendees expected, making it potentially the biggest international climate meeting Aotearoa New Zealand will ever host.
Bottom trawling a triple threat to marine environments - new report
9 Oct 2025
Media release | Greenpeace is calling for urgent action to restrict bottom trawling after a new government report highlights the compounding effects this destructive fishing method has on climate change, habitat degradation and biodiversity loss.
Lobby group launches ‘blueprint’ for ocean management reform
18 Sep 2025
The Environmental Defence Society yesterday released its plan to tackle widespread ecological decline in our oceans.
Councils need funding tools to address climate challenges – LGNZ
Fri 17 Oct 2025
Media release | Local Government New Zealand is welcoming the Government’s new National Adaptation Framework, while cautioning that councils will struggle to meet its new expectations without additional funding tools.
Students repeat request for Victoria University to divest from fossil fuel investments
24 Sep 2025
Media release | A group of students campaigning for climate action at Victoria University of Wellington have dropped a banner protesting against the university’s lack of action on its 2014 commitment to divest from fossil fuels.
Straterra has a new name: the New Zealand Minerals Council
16 Apr 2025
Media release | Straterra has been renamed as New Zealand Minerals Council, says chief executive Josie Vidal.
Record global renewable energy growth remains short of climate target, report says
Thu 16 Oct 2025
A new report finds that a record amount of global renewable energy capacity was added last year, but that still leaves countries “short of targets towards meeting a UN climate goal to triple capacity by 2030”.
Solar households to get little-noticed tax break
23 Sep 2025
A provision in the government’s latest tax bill would exempt households from paying tax on income they earn by selling excess electricity back to the grid.
Climate scientists and republican lawyers are taking aim at Big Tech’s emissions
Fri 17 Oct 2025
Technology companies have long been one of the biggest investors in clean energy, but new accounting rules could upend that.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
31 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government is expected to repeal the oil and gas ban today, with a last-minute amendment handing discretionary power to two ministers over the controversial issue of decommissioning.
For Australia to get moving on electric vehicles, we must ban petrol and diesel cars by 2035
Fri 17 Oct 2025
COMMENT: If nothing is done, transport is projected to be Australia’s largest emissions source by 2030.
Fix it, don't ditch it: University of Auckland hosts first Repair Cafe
9 Oct 2025
Media release - Auckland University | The University's first-ever Repair Cafe is bringing students and staff together to give broken items a new lease on life, while promoting a culture of repair and reuse.
Farmers face heightened solvency risks as climate changes: research
10 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Increasingly volatile weather patterns, higher insurance costs driven by climate change risk and global financial volatility represent risks to New Zealand farmers’ capacity to service debt and remain solvent, according to new research by Christchurch-based research firm Kōmanawa Solutions.
‘Con,’ ‘scam,’ ‘hoax’: Trump’s UN speech on climate
24 Sep 2025
The president used a large chunk of his hour-long speech to world leaders to condemn climate science and clean energy policies.
Trump administration moves to revoke permit for Massachusetts offshore wind project
24 Sep 2025
The Trump administration has moved to block a Massachusetts offshore wind farm, its latest effort to hobble an industry and technology that President Donald Trump has attacked as “ugly” and unreliable compared to fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas.
