April 2021

Kia ora koutou katoa

Welcome to the first NZ Battery Project e-news. We’ve had a busy first few months setting up the new NZ Battery Project team, laying the foundations for project’s first phase, and commissioning initial desktop studies and field work as we investigate solutions to the dry year problem.

The purpose of the NZ Battery Project is to find the best option for New Zealand to manage dry year risk and support the move to 100% renewable electricity.

A dry year is where the country’s existing hydro-power catchments don’t receive enough rainfall or snowmelt, and the level of the storage lakes run low. As we transition away from fossil fuels and increasingly rely on hydro, wind and solar, the dry year problem may expand to become a ‘dry, calm and cloudy’ problem.

The first phase of the NZ Battery Project is a feasibility study intended to identify the best option, or combination of options, to manage or mitigate dry year risk in the context of 100% renewable electricity. Through this e-news we aim to keep you up-to-date with news, progress and announcements.

In addition to these regular e-news updates, we’ll be updating our NZ Battery Project webpages on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) website.

Technical Reference Group members announced

In December the call went out for nominations for the NZ Battery Project’s Technical Reference Group. The Technical Reference Group will provide the NZ Battery Project team with independent expertise, sector knowledge and advice on a wider range perspectives associated with addressing dry year risk.

We’re pleased to announce the members are:

Dr. Allan Miller

Director, Electric Power Engineering Centre, University of Canterbury (2011 – 2017)
Member, Electricity Authority's Innovation & Participation Advisory Group (2017 – present)
Member, MBIE/ENA NZ Smart Grid Forum (2014 – 2016)
Author, Utility-Scale Photovoltaic Solar to 2060 projections for MBIE Generation Stack updates (2020)

Amanda Larsson

Lead Climate and Energy Campaigner, Greenpeace (2017 – present)
Various roles, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), United Kingdom (2010 – 2014)

Dr. Cristiano Marantes

Chief Executive, Ara Ake (2020 – present)
Head of Engineering and General Manager Technology & Innovation, Vector Limited (2015 – 2020)
Various roles, UK Power Networks, United Kingdom (2010 – 2020)

Dr. George Hooper

Independent consultant (2010 – present)
Executive Director, Centre for Advanced Engineering, University of Canterbury (2000 – 2010)
Manager Commercial Development, New Zealand Forest Research (1992 – 2000)
Chairman, New and Emerging Energy Technologies Reference Group, NZ Foundation Research Science and Technology (2011)

Hoani Langsbury

Ngāi Tahu and Te Rūnanga ō Ōtākou
Former Chair, Otago Conservation Board (2005 – 2010)
Member, Department of Conservation's Te Roopu Kaitiaki (2001 – present)

Isla Day

Member, Wellington City Council Environmental Reference Group (2019 – present)
Founding Member, School Strike 4 Climate New Zealand (2019)

Mike Howat

Executive Manager Major Projects and Civil, Fulton Hogan (1993 – 2019)
Independent Member, Ministry of Transport Oversight Group for the NZ Upgrade Programme (2020 – present)
Fellow, Engineering New Zealand

Dr. Stephen Batstone

Head of Strategy and Asset Planning/COVID-19 Recovery Manager, Queenstown Lakes District Council (2018 – present)
Director, Sapere Research Group (2014 – 2018)
Project Manager, BEC2050 and BEC2060 for the BusinessNZ Energy Council
Primary author, foundational report to Productivity Commission for Low Emissions Inquiry 2017/18

It’s especially important that the Technical Reference Group membership balances a range of perspectives, experience and expertise. So while there were a number of high calibre candidates, we believe this group appropriately captures the diversity we need, and the necessary technical expertise and understanding across issues relating to electricity sector, engineering, social, environmental, climate change and mātauranga Māori considerations.

Thank you to everyone who applied or submitted a nomination.

Visit the Technical Reference Group webpage for more information about the group's format and role.

Workstreams for the feasibility study

The Phase 1 feasibly study for the NZ Battery Project has three key workstreams:

·         Pumped hydro at Lake Onslow

·         Pumped hydro elsewhere in New Zealand

·         Other comparator technologies.

The comparator technologies we are considering include both existing and emerging generation and storage options, including: ‘overbuilding’ renewable generation like wind and solar, increasing existing hydro lake storage, large-scale demand responses, bioenergy, hydrogen or other green energy-based solutions.

The aim of the feasibility study is to compare these options, and ask whether they are environmentally, socially, technically and economically feasible within the timeframe for the project.

Across these workstreams we will also be looking at the potential impact of different options on the current electricity market. We will also be considering how these options relate to the government’s wider climate change and energy objectives, including balancing sustainability, affordability and security of supply.

Environmental values study

One of the options we’ll be investigating is pumped hydro storage at Lake Onslow in Central Otago.

There are obvious climate benefits from such a scheme, and its contribution to phasing out coal and gas from the electricity system. But what is less well understood is the impact a pumped hydro storage scheme at Lake Onslow would have on the lake and the surrounding environment.

The Department of Conservation (DOC) has been commissioned to undertake a comprehensive study of environmental, recreational and conservation values at Lake Onslow and its surrounding area, and how these might be affected by a pumped hydro scheme. This will be achieved by a mix of reviewing existing resource information and detailed field work. DOC is expected to release its initial findings to MBIE by the end of the year.

Further work will also commence shortly on assessing the hydrology and ecology at Lake Onslow, and how these could change if a pumped hydro scheme was to be developed.

The potential environmental impacts associated with other possible pumped hydro sites and other technologies or solutions will be considered as and when specific locations or concepts emerge.

Other work is underway

One of the issues we are looking at is the size and scale of the dry year problem, both now and in the future as we transition away from fossil fuels. We have work underway to better understand the dry year problem, and this is one of the first things the Technical Reference Group will consider when they meet.

We have also began early work to identify other potential locations for pumped hydro in New Zealand. We have commissioned NIWA to undertake a scan of the country to identify potential locations. We also intend to discuss potential pumped hydro locations further with those in the electricity industry.

Procurement planning is underway for a geotechnical and engineering assessment and investigation for a pumped hydro scheme at Lake Onslow. This information will form an important part of the overall feasibility study of the Lake Onslow option. We will provide an update on the NZ Battery Project webpage shortly on how the procurement process will proceed. This process will be in line with established government procurement processes.

Recent presentation to energy industry

Last month, the General Manager of MBIE’s Energy and Resource Markets branch Phillippa Fox participated in a panel session at NZ Downstream 21 that explored the Lake Onslow pumped hydro storage option. Downstream is the energy sector’s annual strategic forum and the panel session explored the Lake Onslow pumped hydro storage option. The brief presentation can be viewed under ‘Other Documents’ on the NZ Battery Project webpage.

Project team - who are we?

The NZ Battery Project team was established late last year as part of MBIE’s Energy and Resource Markets branch. The NZ Battery Project team will draw on a range of internal and external resources from across MBIE and beyond.

In our e-news we are keen to introduce you to some of members of our growing team.

Andrew Millar is leading the team. Andrew returns to MBIE, most recently coming from a Managing Principal role at MartinJenkins where he focused on energy, climate and natural resources policy.

Adrian Tweeddale is the Technical Project Manager, with more than 20 years’ experience in engineering, technology development and project management in the energy industry.

Carl Walrond is a Principal Policy Advisor who most recently worked at DOC and the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

Conrad Edwards also joined the new team as a Principal Policy Advisor. Conrad returns to government energy policy after more than 20 years at Transpower as a Principal Market Development Architect, amongst other roles in system operations, grid development and strategy.

Malcolm Schenkel brings decades of experience of electricity market modelling, including many years working at Meridian Energy.

Keep an eye out in future e-news for information about other members of the team.

You can email the team at nzbattery@mbie.govt.nz