NZ | Energy Projects

[Svartmetall]

Originally Posted by metroman

I agree but I wouldn't necessarily say it is any cheaper for lower income earners. Food prices at the supermarket don't vary a great deal, however the quality of fruit and vegetables in New Zealand is definetly better.The more self sufficient New Zealand becomes in regards to energy production the more it becomes attractive in the future. I think that within the next few decades there will be a trend of more expats coming home.

True, but with 1 in 10 of all people in New Zealand being employed in tourism one would think that jobs would be more important. Whilst we might become more self-sufficient energy wise, we're less self-sufficient manufacturing wise as we import nearly every manufactured good out there due to our own poor base.

Energy is only one facet of being self-sufficient and I still think NZ has a very, very long way to go.

[metroman]

Is "Think Big" still alive in some of John Key's policy making? While the original Think Big may have failed, I still can't help thinking that some of Key's policy making is somehow aimed along these lines.

[Svartmetall]

Hm,

Originally Posted by NZ Herald

Landowners' rage at $824m pylon project

4:00AM Thursday May 28, 2009
By James Ihaka

A board of inquiry has approved a Transpower proposal to construct a transmission line from Whakamaru to South Auckland.

But there is still opposition from some of the 314 property owners affected by the proposal.

Transpower yesterday welcomed The Resource Management Act Board of Inquiry's draft decision for it to begin its North Island Grid Upgrade Project.

The decision will be subject to comment from interested parties for 19 days before the board makes a final decision this year.

The project, which has an estimated cost of $824 million, would see new transmission lines put up between Whakamaru, near Tokoroa, and Otahuhu in South Auckland.

Transpower said it wanted to start building access roads as early as next year and begin building pylons at the same time.

The new lines will be capable of carrying 400kV but will initially be operated at 220kV and cranked up by 2030.

The proposal has met ongoing resistance from environmentalists, farmers and lifestyle block owners whose lands are among the 314 properties affected by the new towers - some up to 70m in height.

Landowner Ros Sellers, of Te Miro near Cambridge, said despite the announcement she was "not going to sit by and watch it happen".

If the plans are fully implemented Ms Sellers can expect a 66m-high pylon in a neighbouring paddock with its wires hanging over her driveway.

"They have a lot of easements and purchases to negotiate before they're anywhere near starting so in the meantime we will just gather our forces and just carry on."

Ms Sellers also doubted Transpower chief executive Patrick Strange's claims the national grid operator was willing to establish "respectful and fair relationships with affected landowners".

"They have no idea of what the impact on the community will be ... there's the devastation, the loss of income and the health issues and no dollar value could be put on those things."

Rob Storey, a Waikato spokesman for the New Era Energy group which has long opposed the new line, said the decision was "unfortunate but expected".

"It was a long shot to think it would be turned down but it's still not a decision we are very happy with," he said.

Mr Storey said the process had been a long and tiring one.

"For a lot of people who have sold out to Transpower it has been a case that they have been worn down and did not want it to go on any longer."

Dr Strange said the project was vital to New Zealand's economy. "The upper North Island has experienced several issues with electricity supply in recent years, illustrating the need for the increased capacity that this project will provide, long into the future."

A Transpower spokeswoman said the organisation had agreements either through easements or ownership with 56 per cent of the affected properties.

She said the national grid operator had spent around $150 million buying 74 properties affected on the line route and eight for substation sites or on the underground cable route.

[jarbury]

I wonder where all the farmers who moan about the RMA are now?

[deepred]

Originally Posted by jarbury

I wonder where all the farmers who moan about the RMA are now?

Such people invoke it when it suits them - especially if they gain handsomely from it.

[Richard7666]

Some southern news on the energy front

Roy wants Foveaux Strait to park some wave farms

By MICHAEL FORBES - The Southland Times

Invercargill MP Eric Roy wants to create a marine energy park in Foveaux Strait to harness tidal energy.

Setting aside an area of the strait for tidal energy development would make it easier for interested parties to overcome resource consent issues, Mr Roy said.

This idea follows on from a 2007 attempt to secure part of an $8 million Marine Energy Deployment Fund to commission studies into wave and tidal energy off the coast of Southland.

However, an application for funding was not lodged.

Mr Roy remains keen to continue to pursue development of tidal energy in the south and the marine park was one way to do it.

There was still enough interest from both state-owned and private companies nationwide to suggest the tidal energy project could get off the ground, Mr Roy said.

"There's more than 17 different companies signed up to the Aotearoa Wave and Tidal Energy Association that are interested in tidal energy generation," he said. "The next step is to go to Venture Southland and find out if it's a goer."

Mr Roy said he had two or three locations in mind for the energy park but specialist advice was needed before finalising anything.

Plans would also have to wait until the Government had finished streamlining the Resource Management Act, in case any consent issues the park was designed to avoid were eliminated by the reform, he said.

The act is scheduled to be back before parliament next month.

A National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research study had shown the waves in Foveaux Strait met the criteria needed to generate electricity from wave energy being consistent, high in energy and with a high wave period, Mr Roy said.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-tim...ome-wave-farms

Dam consents would override covenant

By MARK HOTTON - The Southland Times
Last updated 05:00 04/06/2009


Covenants designed to protect land in the Nevis Valley will be worthless if Pioneer Energy obtains the consents required to build a hydro-electric dam.

The revelation was made by Department of Conservation Otago conservator Jeff Connell yesterday at a special tribunal hearing in Cromwell that is considering whether damming of the Nevis River should be prohibited.

Pioneer is the leaseholder of the Ben Nevis and Craigroy stations in Nevis Valley, which are undergoing tenure review.

The electricity-generation company wants to freehold the footprint of a proposed 40-megawatt dam on the Nevis River that would flood up to 8km on the river and create two dams, one the size of Lake Hayes, near Queenstown.

In return for obtaining freehold of about 7800ha, Pioneer plans would vest significant sections of the stations into DOC protection, including 8800ha on the Hector Mountains that would become public conservation land.

DOC has taken a neutral stance on the application by Fish and Game to prohibit dams on the Nevis. This is in part because of a deal done with Pioneer 13 years ago when the electricity generator agreed to support a water conservation order for the Kawarau and its tributaries, which include the Nevis River, in exchange for allowing a section of the river to be flooded for hydro-electricity development.

Mr Connell yesterday told the hearing that if Pioneer did not obtain consents for the proposed dam, then the covenants would protect the land for perpetuity. But, if approval was obtained, the Conservation Minister would be contractually required under the tenure review agreement to move the covenants off to one side and allow the land to be flooded.

DOC could not support an application to prohibit damming the river as that was allowed under the existing water conservation order, which it had agreed to.

Going against that agreement would mean it was acting in bad faith.

Mr Connell said DOC had to constantly weigh up whether the Government's policies and the public interest were better served by making a compromise in a tenure review.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-tim...rride-covenant

[kegan]

Another Tararua wind farm proposal.

Bid for 56 more Tararua turbines
By TANYA KATTERNS - The Dominion Post
17/06/2009

More wind power is being considered for the Tararua Range.

New Zealand Windfarms is hoping to win local government approval for a 56-turbine extension of its Te Rere Hau wind farm, on the eastern side of the Tararuas.

The development is proposed on 300 hectares of land which would connect with the company's already-consented wind farm on the Palmerston North side of the range.

The 47-metre-high turbines would generate enough energy for about 12,000 homes.
more

[kegan]

Windflow Technology have applied for resource consents for a wind farm on Long Gully Station.

Brief description from the resource consent notice:

The construction, maintenance, operation and decommissioning of a wind farm facility involving 25 two-bladed turbines. The development requires associated earthworks for roading and construction purposes as well as the erection of new electricity lines and an upgrade of existing electricity lines. The development also includes the erection of wind-measuring devices and a single-storey operations and maintenance building.

This one might attract a bit of opposition as some of the turbines will be highly visible. The turbines in question are those proposed for the Hawkins Hill ridgeline south of the radar dome. (The majority of the turbines are planned for the ridge on the other side of Long Gully.)

The turbines proposed are similar in size to the existing Brooklyn turbine (a lot smaller than those used in Project West Wind).

[metroman]

Taranaki is being touted as the "Saudi of the South" in investment magazine the Daily Reckoning which states that there is possibly more oil and gas in the Taranaki Basin than Norway, Oman, U.K. and India. GNS also said that indications were strong that the Basin could contain significant amounts of hydrocarbons with up to 50 million barrels of recoverable oil. AWE begin drilling in November to ascertain the viability of commercial oil production. Taranaki is comparatively underexplored compared to other parts of the world.

[NZ1]

Yes, and there are all sorts of small fields that were designated to be non-viable during the height of the Maui field in the 1980's and 1990's but are now being reinvestigated.

[Kane007]

Originally Posted by metroman

Taranaki is being touted as the "Saudi of the South" in investment magazine the Daily Reckoning which states that there is possibly more oil and gas in the Taranaki Basin than Norway, Oman, U.K. and India. GNS also said that indications were strong that the Basin could contain significant amounts of hydrocarbons with up to 50 million barrels of recoverable oil. AWE begin drilling in November to ascertain the viability of commercial oil production. Taranaki is comparatively underexplored compared to other parts of the world.

was that 50 million or was it meant to be 50 billion barrels. Considering Saudi Arabia does about 10 million barrels PER DAY.

[metroman]

At this stage 50,000,000, once. Much will be revealed after November.

[SYDNEY]

Fannytastic for NZ ! What would this mean for Auckland ?

[Svartmetall]

I'd imagine it would mean more for the rural and smaller cities than it would for Auckland. The Central Government has shown (no matter who is in power) that spending on Auckland appears to be comparatively undesirable compared to the rest of the country which is a great shame.

[Richard7666]

Originally Posted by SYDNEY

Fannytastic for NZ ! What would this mean for Auckland ?

No more than it would for Timaru.

[metroman]

www.crownmining.gov.nz/cms/news

[metroman]

Having trouble with links. L and M are planning an aggressive drilling program in search of coal seam gas. Minister for Energy and Resources Mr Brownlee acknowledged the significant resource this country has to develop coal seam gas and that at the moment we are in the infancy stage in New Zealand. A top U.S. oil company is looking at acquiring New Zealand's only refinery.

[Richard7666]

How come you don't just copy and paste links? Your links never seem to work lol

[Richard7666]

Gridding our loins for growth
Last updated 05:00 31/07/2009

"Problems with the capacity of the national grid sometimes present themselves not with blackouts, but with black lines; the sort that get struck through plans that don't materialise, writes The Southland Times in an editorial.

Major new industry has necessarily high expectations for guaranteed power supply. PowerNet chief executive Martin Walton cites the lack of reassurance on this score as having repelled potential customers. Though he declines to be specific, we have had plenty of projects, conspicuously among them nickel, silicon and magnesium smelters, that have yet to eventuate.

Then there's the small matter of the increasing power needs of our existing productive sectors, notably the rise in dairy farming and the operations of Fonterra and the Dongwha Patinna NZ Ltd fibreboard plant at Brydone and, for that matter, the expanding numbers of households moving from other heating sources to electricity, via heat pumps all straining the southern grid to the extent that maximum demand in Southland has jumped from 114 megawatts in 2006 to 126MW now.

All of which means Transpower's plan to spend up to $100 million upgrading Southland's power network has a look of bare necessity to it. Ditto the $155 million project upgrading lines between the Clutha and Waitaki rivers.

A great deal of attention has focused on generation initiatives, from wind farms to small-scale hydro schemes, amid media predictions that Southland is set to become the "energy and dairy powerhouse" of the New Zealand economy within a decade.

At the same time, however, the likes of Meridian and Contact Energy have been becoming more urgent in their assertions that the real challenge for electricity supply in the lower South Island isn't for generation but for more transmission capacity. To that end, the companies last year agreed to work jointly with the Electricity Commission and Transpower towards network upgrades.

Which was both wise in itself and politically expedient. To be seen to be acting in line with calls to focus less on profits and more on managing the system is particularly important right now, after news that the major companies will not be expected to pay back $4.3 billion that an extensive study for the Commerce Commission by Stanford University's Professor Frank Wolak deemed them to have overcharged us between 2001 and 2007, by hoiking wholesale prices significantly higher than they would have been in genuine competitive market conditions.

They don't have to pay that back, Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee has determined. But the Government has initiated a regulatory review of the electricity market, so it would seem to be best-behaviour time.

And not before time.

The impact rests not only on the southern economy, but also on northern suppliers.

When the huge Tiwai smelter isn't on full load, there's excess electricity to be sent north which again raises issues of transmission capacity.

Security of supply, not just for existing southern power users, but also sufficient to stiffen the spines of potential heavy industry, represents good news for the south. It means that in coming years, perhaps decades, we are better placed to strengthen the regional economy significantly by broadening our productive and economic base."

http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-tim...ins-for-growth

[metroman]

www.straterra.co.nz This is the new mining lobby group which has started. Richard Michael the Ceo appeared on tv on the 24 th July briefly explaining what Straterra was all about.