Topics tagged with 'Energy'
EU works with China on carbon-trading pilot
12 Nov 2010
The European Union is working with China on arrangements for a pilot scheme on carbon trading in the world's biggest developing country.
Pension giant to pump $500m into green portfolio
12 Nov 2010
One of the largest public pension funds in the US intends to turn over a new leaf by investing $500 million in environmentally friendly companies.
Russia's carbon market finally starts to move
12 Nov 2010
After years of delay, Russia’s carbon trading market is finally starting to move.
NZ lends helping hand with Australian ETS
5 Nov 2010
New Zealand is helping Australia to work towards putting a price on carbon.
Mexico our latest clean-tech partner
5 Nov 2010
New Zealand and Mexico are working together on clean-tech development.
Battle marks new era in environmental politics
5 Nov 2010
Wealthy Californians and conservation groups this week united in a bipartisan campaign to defeat an oil industry-sponsored initiative, Proposition 23, to suspend the state's greenhouse gas law.
Britain aims for 100,000 green-collar workers
5 Nov 2010
The British government's Green Deal initiative to upgrade the energy efficiency of homes could employ up to 100,000 people by 2015 and even more in the long-term, Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne said this week.
Korea braces for carbon trading system
5 Nov 2010
The Korean government is pushing to introduce a cap-and-trade system for carbon dioxide as early as next year.
Asia seen as hub of renewable energy
5 Nov 2010
Asia will be at the forefront of the shift to renewable energy, says the organiser of a major industry conference.
Fuel-efficient Mini Cooper hits the market
5 Nov 2010
The car dubbed the most fuel-efficient in last month’s EnergyWise Rally is going on sale in New Zealand.
Judges reward maker of light systems
29 Oct 2010
Making energy-efficient lights has earned a Christchurch company the title of third-fastest growing business in the country.
Norfolk Island first to try out personal carbon trading
29 Oct 2010
An Australian university is set to lead a project testing the world’s first personal carbon trading programme conducted in a “closed system” environment on Norfolk Island.
Big oil eyes free carbon permits in California
29 Oct 2010
Oil refiners including Royal Dutch Shell and ConocoPhillips would be among the companies to get free pollution rights under California’s planned cap-and-trade programme for carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Australian experts examine carbon farming
29 Oct 2010
A panel of experts has been appointed to examine ways Australian farmers and foresters can earn carbon credits.
Heliostats spell sunny future for solar industry
29 Oct 2010
Work has begun on installing 450 large mirrors, called heliostats, for Australia’s largest solar-thermal tower system at the CSIRO National Solar Energy Centre in Newcastle.
Frankly speaking - Groser addresses Brazil conference
29 Oct 2010
The challenges of life as an international climate change negotiator have been revealed.
EVENT: Carbon Forum Asia 2010 - on now in Singapore
29 Oct 2010
Of the 2414 CDM (Clean Development Mechanism) projects to date, 77.6 per cent or 1875 are registered in Asia, representing a total of more than 360 million CER (Carbon Emissions Reduction) units.
Southern builder launches sustainable homes
29 Oct 2010
Multi award-winning commercial and residential construction company Rilean Construction is launching a range of energy-efficient, healthy and affordable homes.
Sealord looks at ways to ease ETS costs
22 Oct 2010
Fishing giant Sealord is talking to its quota suppliers about how it can help to ease the financial impact of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Carbon trade transparency key, says manager
22 Oct 2010
The carbon market needs to develop with predictable, transparent practices, says an electricity sector manager involved in buying forward carbon.
NZ wind turbine makes California breakthrough
22 Oct 2010
New Zealand's Windflow Technologies is to build two turbines in California.
Union sparks probe of China's green-tech trade
22 Oct 2010
The United States is investigating China's practices affecting trade and investment in green technologies.
Asian countries high on list of most vulnerable
22 Oct 2010
Some of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies, including India, are facing the greatest climate change risks to their populations, ecosystems and business environments, says a new report.
Whitehall grabs billions from emissions scheme
22 Oct 2010
The British government has carried out a $5.5 billion smash-and-grab on one of its predecessor’s more controversial market-based emissions reduction programmes.
UN okays pioneering Russian carbon project
22 Oct 2010
Russia has been given the green light for its first emissions reductions scheme to be verified under a new UN-backed carbon offset certification procedure.
Voters to speak on California climate law
22 Oct 2010
Californians next month will decide whether to pull back from a landmark anti-pollution law as its economy continues to struggle.
There’s only one thing hotter than China
22 Oct 2010
By Nick Hodge. CRTP!!! That's the instant message I got from my boss last week, just as the stock went ballistic.
Sustainability wins award for hostel
22 Oct 2010
YHA Wellington City has won the Backpacker Accommodation category in the prestigious Tourism Industry Association of New Zealand awards.
Forest owners get positive ETS message from Government
19 Oct 2010
Land owners planting carbon forests say they have been assured that the Emissions Trading Scheme will survive when the Kyoto Protocol ends in 2012.
Wind power plays key role in Trade Me cuts
15 Oct 2010
Wind power and a few tonnes of gases given off by a city rubbish dump have allowed Trade Me to go carbon neutral.
Recycling plant starves as glass goes to pave roads
15 Oct 2010
Auckland’s recycling system means that most of the city’s waste glass is becoming aggregate in roads instead of feeding a $84 million expansion of the country’s only glass recycling plant, the industry says.
How the military's green energy transition can make you rich
15 Oct 2010
By Jeff Siegel.- It was all over the news last week ...
China shows the way in wind energy boom
15 Oct 2010
Wind energy could be supplying 22 per cent of the world's power generation by 2030, and 12 per cent as soon as 2020.
Europe claims victory for aviation role in ETS
15 Oct 2010
The European Union claims the way is now clear for its plans to include aviation in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme from 2012 following an agreement at a meeting in Montreal.
Miner vows customers will benefit from free credits
8 Oct 2010
Solid Energy says it will pass the benefits of its free carbon credits on to customers.
Canada's $1b bonus sparks NZ forest interest
8 Oct 2010
The Canadian Government is putting up to $1 billion into forestry and bioenergy – and New Zealand forest owners want to know why.
Judge fines Methven over enviro shower claim
8 Oct 2010
A company that made false claims about “greenness” of its product has been fined $50,000.
Roadshow rams home the sustainability message
8 Oct 2010
A biodiesel-fuelled roadshow to deliver the message that sustainable practice increasingly equals success and to promote the launch of a new qualification hits the road this weekend.
Big banks slammed for backing coal
8 Oct 2010
A report prepared for Greenpeace has found Australia's big four banks are pouring huge amounts of money into the most polluting form of power generation: coal.
Last talks before Cancun bog down in China
8 Oct 2010
Financial assistance from developed countries for projects to combat climate change in the developing world has emerged as a key sticking point at the climate meeting in China, which is the last round of negotiations before the year-end Cancun conference.
UN to list ‘30 Ways in 30 Days’ to combat change
8 Oct 2010
In the run up to next month’s major climate change conference in Cancún, the United Nations will release one case study daily for 30 days to prove that solutions to combat global are available, accessible and replicable.
Solar giant plans huge plant in WA
8 Oct 2010
Perth-based Verve Energy and BP Solar, one of the world’s largest solar companies, have announced plans to build Australia’s largest grid-connected solar photovoltaic plant near Geraldton, Western Australia.
Greenpeace stages protest over oil drilling
8 Oct 2010
"Oil"-smeared people walked through central Wellington on Wednesday to protest Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee’s reckless determination to dig and drill for more dirty fossil fuels while ignoring the impacts on climate change.
Solar returning to the White House
8 Oct 2010
There are to be solar panels on the White House, but not on the Beehive.
Free credits now in the hands of industrial emitters
1 Oct 2010
Free carbon credits have been issued to industrial users.
ETS changes leave Kiwis with $820m Kyoto bill
1 Oct 2010
Changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme will leave the public with an $820 million deficit for the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.
Wellington puts electric cars to the test
1 Oct 2010
New Zealand has its first fleet of production electric cars.
This emissions business is hard, says China
1 Oct 2010
China's goals to slow greenhouse gas growth will be tough and costly, says the nation's top climate change official.
Garnaut back on the Aussie merry-go-round
1 Oct 2010
The man who wrote the climate change report for former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd will be helping to do it all again for the country's new leader.
Ecuador oil deal shows how it can be done, says UN
1 Oct 2010
An Ecuadorian decision to leave vast amounts of oil in the ground to protect the biodiversity of a national park represents a model of the kind of innovative international partnership that benefits everyone, says a senior United Nations official.
Fifty years of observations, no reversal of glacier climate damage
31 Mar 2026
Media release: Earth Sciences New Zealand | Fifty years on from the first aerial survey of our Southern Alps glaciers, late snow and variable summer weather delivered a temporary reprieve from rapid ice loss, says Earth Sciences New Zealand.
Climate experts say spring is coming earlier. How will that affect agriculture and ecosystems?
Tue 7 Apr 2026
An earlier spring affects when migratory birds arrive, leaves emerge, and fruit ripens — among plants and animals that determine ecosystem health.
$30m airline fund risks ‘burning public money’ without lasting benefit – expert
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A $30 million government package to support regional air routes risks delivering poor value for money while increasing emissions, according to transport strategist Tim Adriaansen.
Signs of jet fuel hoarding emerge in Asia on Iran oil shock
26 Mar 2026
Signs are growing that Asian countries are hoarding jet fuel after the Iran war sent oil prices surging, reflecting growing strain on the aviation industry.
Environmental groups launch legal action over Govt's 'tick-box approach' to conservation land
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Forest & Bird and the Environmental Defence Society are taking the Government to court over decisions about the future of publicly-owned land on Te Tai Poutini/the West Coast.
New alliance wants renewable-led energy – and Govt to press pause on LNG
Thu 9 Apr 2026
A newly formed coalition of business, consumer and energy organisations has unveiled a renewable-led strategy it says will strengthen the country’s energy security, and it’s calling on the Government to pause its plan for an LNG import terminal.
Supply-side pressures and political uncertainty ahead for carbon market
Tue 7 Apr 2026
By Kristen Green | ANALYSIS: With failed auctions, a surge of new forestry registrations, and an election a few months away, the NZ ETS in 2026 will be subject to a mix of supply-side pressures and political uncertainty.
Solar energy, cheap battery storage can meet 90% of India’s power demand at affordable costs: Ember report
Thu 9 Apr 2026
Battery storage is now cheap enough in India that solar power can meet 90% of the country’s power demand at lower lifetime costs than current average purchase rates in most states, a new study has found, a finding that could potentially point to a future buffer against global energy shocks.
Economic contraction will impact carbon market
1 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | While higher fossil fuel prices strengthen the long-run economics of decarbonisation, the current fuel crisis won’t inspire near-term confidence in the carbon market, according to Lizzie Chambers of Carbon Match.
Genesis fires up pellet study with Nature’s Flame
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Genesis Energy is extending its quest for locally produced torrefied wood pellets to supplement coal and gas to fuel its Huntly power station, announcing it is investigating plant construction with established local solid fuels player Nature’s Flame.
Death toll in Afghanistan flooding increases to 28, authorities say
1 Apr 2026
Afghan authorities said Monday that the death toll from severe weather that has struck swathes of the country over the past four days has increased to 28, with 49 people injured. Dozens of people have died from extreme weather in the country so far this year.
Sustainable retail-office project breaks ground under new Green Star framework
19 Feb 2026
Construction is set to begin on a new retail-office development in central Auckland, which is targeting a 40% reduction in embodied carbon and 25% lower energy.
Opposition attacks Govt over fossil fuel phaseout backdown
2 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | Revelations that Resources Minister Shane Jones ruled out New Zealand signing up to a 'road map' away from fossil fuels at last year’s global climate summit show the National Party’s minor coalition partners’ undue influence over the Government, according to Labour leader Chris Hipkins.
Carbon price: Ups and downs amid geopolitical uncertainty
26 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | After ups and downs in recent weeks, the carbon market again broke above the $40 mark this week, with questions around how the Middle East conflict will play out weighing on market confidence.
Environmental groups call for ETS reform
20 Feb 2026
Several environmental organisations are calling on political parties to make climate and biodiversity central to the 2026 election campaign, with reforming the Emissions Trading Scheme seen as a key priority.
Severe tropical cyclones Maila And Vaianu threaten communities in Solomon Islands, PNG and Fiji
Wed 8 Apr 2026
Media release: 350.org |Two Category 3 Tropical Cyclones are currently moving through the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Fiji, while experts watch a third system potentially developing in the North Pacific.
Transport dominates NZ’s rising consumer emissions
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Transport pollution was the biggest contributor to an increase in New Zealand’s consumption-based emissions in 2023, with emissions from household travel up 12%, and consumption-based emissions totalling 58.3 million tonnes – up 1.6% from the previous year.
Wellington planting nears one million trees
30 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greater Wellington’s parks restoration programme will hit one million native trees this year, with the first dams to rewet peat wetlands in Queen Elizabeth Park now completed after a years-long effort to bring these ecosystems – and their carbon sequestering superpowers – back to life.
Renewable build-out runs into grid and firming limits
Wed 8 Apr 2026
New Zealand's electricity market entered 2026 with renewable generation at record levels and a substantial build pipeline finally moving from paper to construction. The harder question is whether the wider system can absorb and firm that capacity fast enough.
A matter of strategy
Tue 7 Apr 2026
COMMENT: Even on the brink of a global commodities crisis, the possibilities for climate action aren't hopelessly foreclosed. Strategy can turn our fortunes around, writes David Hall.
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.”
FMA to ease conditions for green bond issues
31 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Green, social and sustainability-linked bonds will face lower disclosure requirements and regulatory costs under a class exemption newly granted by the Financial Markets Authority.
New protections for NZ migratory species under UN convention
2 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New international protections for migratory species, including several found in New Zealand, are a positive step – but global protections won’t halt the decline of migratory species on their own, experts say.
Fonterra admits ‘100% grass-fed’ claim breached law in greenwashing row
2 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Fonterra has admitted its “100% New Zealand grass-fed” claims on Anchor butter were misleading and breached the law, settling a case brought by Greenpeace Aotearoa over packaging used between December 2023 and April 2025.
Govt missing opportunity to slash electricity prices, says expert
11 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s fixation on eliminating the "dry-year risk margin" as a lever to reduce costs misses a much bigger opportunity to lower electricity prices, according to Christina Hood, head of Compass Climate.
NZ prepares to join ‘gold rush’ for white hydrogen
25 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand may be close to commercialising the capture and use of naturally occurring ‘white’ hydrogen, with investment plans for developments in the Wairarapa region picking up pace in response to spiralling oil prices.
Media round-up
20 Mar 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Crown lawyers agree High Court could quash emissions plan if found unlawful; NZ is locked in 'disaster inertia'; and climate change is notably absent from new development laws.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
19 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s controversial changes to New Zealand’s legal framework for climate policy have thrown a spanner in the works for a long-running Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry into climate change.
Lawyers complain to ombudsman over Govt failure to release LNG modelling
1 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Lawyers for Climate Action has made a formal complaint to the Ombudsman over the Government’s failure to release information about its controversial decision to build a LNG import terminal.
EA entrenches 10kW export limit for residential solar
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The Electricity Authority intends to require all electricity networks to offer at least a 10 kilowatt (kW) export capacity for residential rooftop and other small-scale distributed generation.
NZ First targets regional share of mining royalties
30 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand First has proposed returning 50% of mining royalties to regional communities, saying that too much of the value from resource extraction is currently flowing to Wellington.
Tuvalu prioritises climate change in agreement with NZ
27 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand has pledged an additional $20 million to climate resilience work in Tuvalu, more than doubling Aotearoa's aid to the tiny island nation in the current financial year.
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.
Worst in a generation: Environmentalists slam fisheries reform bill
25 Mar 2026
Media release: Greenpeace | The Fisheries Amendment Bill, which will likely have its first reading in parliament this week, is being labelled the worst fisheries policy in a generation by environmental groups who are calling for it to be rejected to protect ocean health.
Free fares call as fuel crisis impacts school attendance
Wed 8 Apr 2026
An open letter is urging the Government to make public transport free for all school children and subsidised for students under 25, as rising fuel costs begin to impact attendance and access to education across the country.
Kiwis overly optimistic about state of environment
27 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests many New Zealanders believe the environment is in better shape than it really is, with public perceptions often out of step with scientific evidence.
‘They pushed so many lies about recycling’: the fight to stop big oil pumping billions more into plastics
24 Feb 2026
Plastic production has doubled over the last 20 years – and will likely double again. For author Beth Gardiner, metal water bottles and canvas tote bags are not the solution. So what is?
Activists occupy controversial gold drilling site
25 Mar 2026
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Opposition in Golden Bay to a controversial gold mine at Sams Creek has flared up over the weekend after several activists briefly occupied a drilling site.
China has a new competitor? Kazakhstan reveals huge rare Earth deposit that could power the next tech boom
25 Feb 2026
China’s grip on rare earths might finally see some competition, and the world is already taking notice.
Sci-tech prioritisation report is a joke that could cost NZ dearly, says NZ Association of Scientists
2 Apr 2026
Media release: New Zealand Association of Scientists | The Prioritisation Report released yesterday by the Prime Minister’s Science Innovation and Technology Council makes a poor case for further cuts and changes to our research system.
Carbon trading schemes cut more emissions than carbon taxes, according to global study
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Carbon trading schemes are more effective than carbon taxes at reducing emissions, cutting fossil fuel use, and accelerating the shift to renewable energy, a global study has found.
AI’s arrival complicates Big Tech climate goals, and some worry it’s locking in more fossil fuels
2 Apr 2026
Six years ago, Google was confident that by 2030 it would power all operations with electricity generated from clean sources, including wind and solar power, and remove as much pollution as it produced. Today it calls those goals a “moonshot.” Microsoft says it’s still aiming to remove more carbon than it creates by 2030 but now describes the effort as “a marathon, not a sprint.”
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With New Zealand's $1.3 billion international climate finance commitment set to end with no clarity on what follows, the Auditor-General says oversight of that funding remains patchy and long-term outcomes are unclear.
Fuel crisis powers surge in EV interest in Asia-Pacific region
Tue 7 Apr 2026
Motorists across the Asia-Pacific region are switching to electric vehicles at a rapid pace, as rising fuel costs due to the Middle East war force consumers and companies to reconsider their reliance on petrol and diesel vehicles.
Infrastructure plan calls for ‘predictable approach’ to electrifying economy
18 Feb 2026
Aotearoa’s first National Infrastructure Plan, introduced to Parliament yesterday, calls for "a predictable approach to electrifying the economy" as one of ten priorities for the next decade.
Dairy farmers' lack of climate action 'even bleaker' than water inaction – Upton
1 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Government projections for cutting agricultural emissions are being undermined by low farmer uptake, with the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment warning the country is relying on “heroic” assumptions to meet its methane targets.
AI tool predicts wildfire danger faster than current systems
26 Mar 2026
Media release | A wildfire forecasting system powered by artificial intelligence could help detect dangerous fire conditions earlier and reduce the cost of wildfire response, according to new research from Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury.
Fast-track approved project could deliver NZ’s largest wind farm
Tue 7 Apr 2026
Media release: New Zealand Government |Fast-track approval has been granted for New Zealand’s largest wind farm project.
