Topics tagged with 'Energy'
US speculation regulator includes NZ among targets
5 Sep 2008
The American Commodity Futures Trading Commission is targeting United Kingdom and Commonwealth traders involved in no-limit speculative oil trades.
Dunne's eggs crack
5 Sep 2008
United Future leader Peter Dunne has called for household assistance to cover emissions charges.
Meet Major Holmes, our forgotten father of oil
5 Sep 2008
In the oil-producing Gulf states, he is still known as Abu Naft, the father of oil.
Climate forecasts crucial to water resources, say weather watchers
5 Sep 2008
The chief of the UN meteorological agency has called for weather forecasts to play a greater role in planning for economic development and poverty reduction because of the impact climate change has on water resources.
India must brace for the worst, warns UN agency
5 Sep 2008
Climate change is likely to have a much greater impact on India than other countries in similar positions, according to an assessment by the South Asia regional office of the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation.
Pachauri to head IPCC for further five years
5 Sep 2008
Rajendra Kumar Pachauri has been elected chairman of the UN body Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for a second term.
Honda brings back Insight to fight for hybrid market share
5 Sep 2008
Honda is bringing back the Insight name for its newest hybrid model, which will make its world debut in concept form at the Paris auto show in October.
Crown submission on Meridian wind farm proposal
5 Sep 2008
The Crown has made a submission on Meridian Energy's wind farm proposal in the Central North Island, Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said.
Solar energy can bring clean energy to over 4 billion people by 2030
5 Sep 2008
Solar electricity can contribute largely to the energy needs of two-thirds of the world's population - including those in remote areas - by 2030.
ETS bill a good compromise - CTU
2 Sep 2008
The CTU welcomes the progress being made in Parliament on the emissions trading scheme.
Maori Party against ETS bill: concern over subsidies, impacts on Maori land owners
2 Sep 2008
The Maori Party says in EST bill debate that it is "opposed to the concept of paying the polluters; of rewarding the corporate lobbyists with huge exemptions; and the very nature of trading rather than reducing emissions."
Contact files consent application for Waitahora wind farm
2 Sep 2008
Contact Energy yesterday filed resource consent applications with the Tararua District Council for its 177 megawatt Waitahora wind farm south-east of Dannevirke.
OctaFuel slams AA over comments that fuel saving devices don’t work
2 Sep 2008
OctaFuel New Zealand, suppliers and installers of retrofitted hybrid fuel cells, and pioneers of retrofitted regenerative braking and heat to energy recovery modules in motorcars, believes the AA has abused its position as a trusted source of credible information by suggesting to the general public that all fuel saving devices don’t work, when the truth is they do not undertake independent testing of fuel saving devices.
Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre 30-31 October 2008
2 Sep 2008
The Australian Federal Minister for Climate Change and Water, Senator the Hon Penny Wong will address the inaugural Carbon Market Expo Australasia on the Gold Coast 29th-31st October.
ETS agreement blocks trade in 'black' hot-air credits
29 Aug 2008
AAU credits will not be automatically redeemable under the New Zealand emissions trading scheme.
Big businesses might flee NZ, warn heavy emitters
29 Aug 2008
New Zealand’s heavy emitters say that sharing some of their free carbon credits with smaller emitters could see companies leave the country.
Wind energy developers keep keen eye on new approvals process
29 Aug 2008
The wind energy sector is waiting with bated breath to see how the new “calling in” approvals process works.
ETS DEALS: What the Greens and NZ First got changed
29 Aug 2008
Changes to the ETS bill, negotiated in return for the support of the Green and New Zealand First parties, are:
MAF excited at finding cellulose perennial solution to biofuels
29 Aug 2008
A MAF report indicates that using 12 per cent of the nation’s pastoral land to grow herbaceous feed-stocks for bioethanol production would provide equivalent energy to that “derived from current total petrol usage.”
Accra talks bode well for future climate change negotiations, says UN
29 Aug 2008
Important progress has been made during the latest round of United Nations-led climate change talks in Ghana on key issues relating to a new international agreement to tackle global warming, the world body’s top official dealing with the issue said yesterday.
Poorer countries face $170 billion climate change bill
29 Aug 2008
A total of $US170 billion is needed between now and 2030 to enable developing countries to mitigate and adapt to the impact of climate change, the World Bank says.
New report lists advantages of scrapping fossil fuel subsidies
29 Aug 2008
A newly published UN report says scrapping fossil fuel subsidies could play an important role in cutting greenhouse gases while giving a small but not insignificant boost to the global economy.
Biofuels sustainability review puts forests ahead of food crops
29 Aug 2008
A scientific review of options for the production of bioenergy in New Zealand, their economic viability and sustainability, provides further weight to the argument that energy from forests is one of New Zealand's best option for producing its own biofuels.
Statement from New Zealand First
27 Aug 2008
New Zealand First has decided to support the amended Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) after several months of consideration and negotiations with the Government.
REACTION: Greenpeace welcomes Greens' decision
26 Aug 2008
Greenpeace has welcomed the Green's support for the emissions trading scheme (ETS), saying the party has secured some positive measures.
REACTION: Emissions trading will hurt, says coalition
26 Aug 2008
Catherine Beard, executive director of the Greenhouse Policy Coalition says the emissions trading legislation before Parliament, due to its comprehensive coverage and lack of price safety valves, will be the highest cost scheme in the world.
Heavy emitters stand to lose credits under deal with Greens
26 Aug 2008
New Zealand’s heaviest emitters of greenhouse gases will have to relinquish some of their free carbon credits to smaller companies under a deal won by the Green Party.
National goes quiet on coal-fired power
26 Aug 2008
The National Party is tamping down any discussion on the value of coal-fired power, in spite of coal comprising up 95 per cent of recoverable fuel reserves and in sufficient volume to last for 1500 years.
ANALYSIS: How we can live without cars
26 Aug 2008
A new report by the Land Transport Agency reads like a Green Party policy statement at first glance – it’s time to change public attitudes so that single-occupant car journeys become a thing of the past and people use more public transport.
NEW ROADS: Do we really need them, asks energy activist
26 Aug 2008
Forget road tolls - the real questions is whether we need new roads at all.
Deforestation question splits delegates at Ghana conference
26 Aug 2008
Trading carbon emission rights between developed and developing nations has caused a split between delegates at international climate change talks in Ghana, reports AFP.
Student’s build-in-a-day wind turbine is made from junk
26 Aug 2008
A wind turbine built from waste has earned a British student a first-class honours degree.
Kyoto Forest owners say they need ETS passed
26 Aug 2008
The thousands of New Zealanders who invested their own savings to plant trees in the 1990s need the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) legislation to be passed in order to secure the estimated $1.6 billion of carbon credits promised to them by all parties in Parliament, the Kyoto Forestry Association (KFA) has told the Green Party.
Northland gives nod to Kaipara tidal energy project
22 Aug 2008
Crest Energy has passed a major hurdle in its bid to set up a tidal energy plant at the mouth of the Kaipara Harbour.
Niwa scientists take serious look at algae for biofuel
22 Aug 2008
The sudden falling-from-grace of biofuels because of links to food shortages and food-price rises has intensified research into local algae sources by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research.
City-centre green village signs Telecom as anchor tenant
22 Aug 2008
Telecom has become the anchor tenant of Wellington’s Willis Central scheme, confirming the designer's claim that it will be the nation’s first genuine Green inner-city mixed-use development.
India accuses UN of bias as climate change talks resume
22 Aug 2008
Sparks could fly at the next round of international climate change negotiations which start today in Accra, Ghana, with India out to stub any attempts by Japan, the EU and the US to firm up an agenda against it and China.
O’Reilly and son go big in Irish Sea oil and gas
22 Aug 2008
Ireland’s wealthy O’Reilly family, which has strong business interests in New Zealand, has invested heavily in oil and gas exploration in a move that could see them become what one London newspaper called the Ewings of the Emerald Isle.
Schools race to sign with solar power programme
22 Aug 2008
Almost 1400 schools across Australia have signed up for the Rudd Government’s $480 million National Solar Schools Programme.
Fonterra trialling new eco-friendly tanker
22 Aug 2008
Fonterra is trialling a new eco-friendly tanker in its milk collection operations that could significantly cut emissions in the company’s 427 strong fleet which covers about 75 million km every year.
ETS must pass despite weaknesses, says Greenpeace
22 Aug 2008
Despite shortcomings, it is imperative that New Zealand's emissions trading scheme (ETS) is passed into law this parliamentary term, says Greenpeace
National’s energy policy hooks the fishing crowd
19 Aug 2008
Anglers who say coal is a better option than hydro power think they might have found an ally in the National Party.
Public happier with Personal Carbon Trading, study shows
19 Aug 2008
New research by Britain’s Institute for Public Policy Research reveals that the public favours Personal Carbon Trading (PCT) over other emission reduction policy options for individuals and households.
We'll have an ETS in nine months, vows National
15 Aug 2008
The National Party says it will have an emissions trading scheme in place within nine months of becoming government – three months later than it has said earlier.
Key’s energy message: We’ll give you all the electricity you need
15 Aug 2008
Those who want to grow need to know they have the power supply necessary to do so – that’s the key message at the heart of the National Party’s energy policy released yesterday by leader John Key and energy spokesman Gerry Brownlee.
ANALYSIS: Nats' policy shop - an open back door?
15 Aug 2008
The National Party’s energy policy hits some fairly predictable expected notes – reform the Resource Management Act (RMA), make it easier for new power stations to be built, promote oil and gas exploration, get rid of unnecessary bureaucracy ... but it’s some of the finer detail (and in many cases lack of it) that makes the policy interesting.
ETS equals economic upheaval, say heavy emitters
15 Aug 2008
Heavy emitters are warning that the New Zealand economy is in for a roller-coaster ride if the emissions trading scheme comes into force.
Carbon credits undervalued, says report
15 Aug 2008
Latest figures from the northern hemisphere summer issue of the Global Carbon Report, researched and published by leading market intelligence provider IDEAcarbon, suggest that carbon is currently undervalued in light of changing market fundamentals.
Carbon sequestration has its problems, warns report
15 Aug 2008
Burying carbon dioxide from coal-fired plants could increase other pollutants, warns a new study.
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.
