NZ EVs to no longer be powered by coal

One of the remaining arguments around the roll out of electric vehicles has been that it simply shifts the pollution elsewhere. An announcement this week has indicated this will be even less so in New Zealand.

GGenesis Energy has confirmed that its last two coal-burning electricity generators at the Huntly Power Station will be permanently withdrawn from the market by December 2018, signaling the end of large scale coal-fired generation, and associated carbon emissions, in New Zealand.

Chief executive Albert Brantley said the Company has been on track to retire the four coal/gas fired Rankine units since 2009.

“The development of lower cost renewable generation, principally wind and geothermal, investment in the HVDC link, and relatively flat growth in consumer and industrial demand for electricity have combined to reinforce the decision to retire the remaining Rankine units, which will deliver further operational efficiencies to Genesis Energy,” Brantley says.

Electricity generation will continue at the Huntly site for years to come from the two existing gas-fuelled units, the high efficiency 400MW Unit 5, and the smaller 50 MW open cycle Unit 6.

The closure will have a positive impact on overall CO2 emissions in New Zealand, moving the New Zealand electricity generation sector closer to its 90% renewable target. At their peak, the units emitted around 5,000 kilotonnes (kt) of CO2 per year – amounting to around 5% of New Zealand’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

With decreased utilisation of the Rankine units, and recent commissioning of more efficient gas generation on site, carbon emissions at Huntly dropped to around 2,300kt in the 2015 financial year, and will drop significantly after 2018.