Top contenders for non-hydro options being investigated
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December 2021
Kia ora
This is a special NZ Battery Project E-news to finish off the year – and what a year it’s been. We want to take this opportunity to say thank you for signing up to receive these updates. We also update the NZ Battery Project webpages occasionally, but this e-news allows us to keep people informed about the smaller milestones and progress as we work to find the best solution, or combination of solutions, to the dry year problem.
Top contenders for non-hydro options being investigated
In our last e-news, we announced the 5 non-hydro energy types also being considered as possible solutions to the dry year problem. They are:
- bioenergy (biomass, biogas, biofuel)
- geothermal energy
- hydrogen or other renewable energy vectors
- compressed or liquid air
- flow batteries
We recently contracted consultancy firm WSP to identify the 2 or 3 most feasible options for storing 1,000 – 5,000 GWh of electricity (or equivalent dispatchable generation) for dry-year support from 2030. Some of these may also be suitable for large-scale demand response.
WSP will further investigate the technical and commercial feasibility of these options, including how they could integrate into the New Zealand’s electricity market.
This feasibility study will enable the NZ Battery Project to understand how they would perform against, or when combined with, pumped hydro or other hydro options.
That’s it from us for now. We hope you have a long, relaxing break over the holiday period. We look forward to sharing our next round of news and updates in the new year.
The NZ Battery Project team
If you would like to get in touch with the team, please email us at nzbattery@mbie.govt.nz.
