National New Energy Development Centre for Taranaki

A multi-million dollar clean energy centre will be established by the Government in Taranaki to help lead New Zealand’s transition to a low carbon future, prime minister Jacinda Ardern says.

“The centre will look at the full range of emerging clean energy options such as offshore wind, solar batteries, hydrogen and new forms of energy storage,” says Ardern.

That’s expected to have wider implications for transport, particularly with electrification and hydrogen fuel.

The new centre will enable a coordination function across industry and research organisations and across locales, providing opportunities for testing and trialling of new technologies. It is not replacing the new energy work of Crown Research Institutes, Independent Research Organisations or other government research organisations, a briefing explains.

To tackle the long-term challenge of climate change, the Government will also invest in early stage research into cutting-edge energy production.

“The National New Energy Development Centre will help create new business and jobs in Taranaki while helping New Zealand move towards clean, affordable, renewable energy and away from fossil fuels,” Ardern says.

“Our global confrontation with the changing climate requires us to face the long-term challenge of sustainably powering our economy over the next 30 years to ensure we are the best place in the world to live, to work, to raise a family and to get ahead.

“For decades, Taranaki has been our top energy producing region and now, in the 21st century, the region can be a leader in clean energy as well. It’s well known that local businesses and workers already have the skills, experience and international links to support new developments in clean energy technology and infrastructure.

“That’s why the Wellbeing Budget is investing $27 million to set up the centre in Taranaki, alongside $20 million over four years to establish a new science research fund for cutting-edge energy technology so that we can look into the likes of organic photovoltaics, super conductors, nanotechnologies and inductive power.

The centre came through the region’s 2050 roadmap process, first prepared by Taranaki’s economic development agency Venture Taranaki, that brought together business, unions and iwi leaders to chart a future path for the local economy.

“This centre will complement our investments in hydrogen, Green Finance Ltd, the Zero Carbon Bill and our upcoming renewable energy strategy to help New Zealand create new jobs in new industries while moving away from fossil fuels that cause climate change,” Ardern adds.

The Productivity Commission found no one hub supporting and directing the development of new energy forms in the country and argued that one was badly needed.

The Provincial Growth Fund last year invested $100,000 towards the centre’s feasibility study.

It will not itself be a research centre, but will rather coordinate and support opportunities for new energy technologies to be tested and further developed for commercial or larger-scale use.

The centre could also look at how existing petroleum infrastructure and technologies could be repurposed to support new energy initiatives.

These initiatives are part of a Wellbeing Budget package focused on research into agriculture, emissions and energy to transition to a sustainable and low emissions economy.