Press Release from the New Zealand Wind Energy Association
July 12 2001.

IEA Involvement Squashes Renewables from Strategy Development Process

"The latest IEA report on energy use in New Zealand must be condemned as a sham of biased and outdated tunnel vision thinking" said Alistair Wilson, Chairman of the NZ Wind Energy Association (NZWEA).

"Fossil fuelled business appears to have influenced the response prepared by the Ministry of Economic Development and used by the International Energy Agency (IEA) to prepare the report on New Zealand. Their work is at odds with, and undermines, all of the submissions from the renewable energy industry and those passionate public who wanted to be involved in the development of the National Energy Efficiency & Conservation Strategy for New Zealand" said Mr Wilson.

"NZWEA is very disappointed in the IEA's lack of support for the sustainable energy future which is published Government policy. It appears like an attempt to kill off the development of new sustainable energy industries in New Zealand before they even get to first base".

A national strategy for promotion of energy efficiency and renewable energy is currently being developed by the Energy Efficiency & Conservation Authority (EECA) and Ministry for the Environment (MfE). Public consultations on the draft document have been completed, but the final version of the strategy is not due for release until 1 October. "The IEA have pulled the rug out from under them with this biased and one-sided report" said Mr Wilson.

The strongest sentiments that the IEA recommended for the New Zealand renewable energy industry is that we 'consider how small-scale renewable sources of energy can efficiently participate in the competitive electricity market', and 'encourage small-scale renewable energy generators to address problems of reliability and to improve overall operational efficiency Š'

Mr Wilson contended that it was clear that the IEA report was completely out of kilter with their own sustainability objectives, and clearly is not in New Zealand's sustainable interest.

Mr Wilson then cited examples of measures to support renewable energy that the IEA had included in other country reports. [These are available at www.iea.org]

The latest IEA report on Australia recommended that they 'Continue to use, and if possible expand, incentives within the regulatory reform process, such as the Mandatory Renewable Energy Targets'

The Swedish IEA report recommended that the Government should 'Introduce a scheme to support market entry of renewables that does not distort competition.'

For Canada the IEA recommended 'Further advancement of renewable energy may require some form of support, preferably through market-based incentives consistent with reforms that are underway in the electricity market.'

The IEA report on the Netherlands noted that 'Dutch citizens are very environmentally minded. They are prepared to pay extra for clean and renewable energy to meet the national climate commitments. Š..The Netherlands aims at cutting Greenhouse gas emissions by 50 million tonnes by 2010, and at raising the share of renewables from 1% in 1995 to 10% in 2020.

These sorts of comments should have been reported for New Zealand also [refer to recent study reported by Massey University on this issue.] said Mr Wilson.

ENDS =========

For additional comment please contact: Alistair Wilson, Chairperson NZWEA, 021 194 3083 or Ian Shearer, Manager NZWEA, 025 306 004. -- Ian Shearer Manager New Zealand Wind Energy Association P O Box 553 Wellington, New Zealand Phone: +64-4-586 2003 Fax: +64-4-586 2004 Mobile 025 306 004 Email: nzwea@windenergy.org.nz Web: http://www.windenergy.org.nz

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THE FOLLOWING MATERIAL IS LEFT AS NOTES FOR JOURNALISTS. EXTRACTS FROM IEA REPORTS FROM THE IEA WEB SITE WWW.IEA.ORG

Extract from: IEA Statement on Sustainable development

5. Sustainability demands that we seek to change present trends. The challenge is to fuel world-wide economic growth with a secure and reliable energy supply, without despoiling our environment. It is possible. Energy supply needs to be further de-carbonised, diversified and the energy intensity of economic growth reduced. Global energy security can be enhanced through collective efforts and efficient but well-regulated markets can make energy affordable.

Towards a Solution 6. The transition to a sustainable energy future will be complex and will take time. We need to change not only the structure of the energy sector, but also behaviour in our societies and economies.

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Toward a Sustainable Energy Future. IEA Report. The manner in which we produce and consume energy is of crucial importance to sustainable development, as energy has deep relationships with each of its three dimensions -- the economy, the environment and social welfare.

The manner in which we produce and consume energy is of crucial importance to sustainable development, as energy has deep relationships with each of its three dimensions -- the economy, the environment and social welfare.

These relationships develop in a fast-moving and complex situation characterised by increasing globalisation, growing market liberalisation and new technologies, as well as by growing concerns about climate change and energy-supply security. In order to make energy an integral part of sustainable development, new policies need to be developed. Such policies must strike a balance among the three dimensions of sustainable development. They must reduce our exposure to large-scale risk.

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Australia Report - extracts from recommendations.

… Continue to use, and if possible expand, incentives within the regulatory reform process, such as the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target, to reduce adverse environmental consequences. … Implement the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target rapidly, and review it periodically with a view to tightening it. … Participate in international efforts to reduce dramatically the cost of renewable energy equipment through market aggregation and large-scale manufacturing. … Support IEA Implementing Agreements to meet this objective. … Expand opportunities for manufacture of wind turbines, bagasse-fired high-pressure turbines, photovoltaics and biomass gasification units. … Continue to provide a favourable environment for renewables in niche markets, such as the "dispatchable wind power" in Tasmania.

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Sweden 2000- extracts from recommendations.

* [Notes] the aim to use renewables and energy efficiency as the principal means of replacing lost nuclear capacity.

The Government of Sweden should:

* Introduce, as planned, a scheme to support market entry of renewables that does not distort competition.

* Keep government support for renewables under continuous review, with the objective of ensuring that satisfactory progress is being made towards the goal of competitiveness with other fuels.

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Canada 2000- extracts from recommendations.

Further advancement of renewable energy may require some form of support, preferably through market-based incentives consistent with reforms that are underway in the electricity market.

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Netherlands 2000

Dutch citizens are very environmentally minded. They are prepared to pay extra for clean and renewable energy to meet the national climate commitments. The government has set ambitious targets for reducing carbon dioxide emissions and increasing the share of renewables in the energy market. The Netherlands aims at cutting Greenhouse gas emissions by 50 million tonnes by 2010, and at raising the share of renewables from 1% in 1995 to 10% in 2020. The government has put together a programme that can achieve this - as well as a back-up plan if the target is not reached, and a plan for the long term.

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