Crest Tidal Power Project Welcomes Approval From Minister

Crest Tidal Power Project Welcomes Approval From Minister

Crest Energy announced today it is delighted with the Minister of Conservation’s decision to approve their application for the development of New Zealand’s first tidal power station at Kaipara Harbour.

John Maclachlan, Crest Energy Chairman said “the decision was a long awaited milestone for the company and for the development of New Zealand’s sustainable energy capability.”

“It marks the beginning of a new $600 million project harnessing renewable energy that has the potential to provide a secure supply of clean green electricity for up to 250,000 homes in the Northland and Auckland regions,” he added.

When fully implemented the Crest tidal power project could generate up to 200 mega watts of power from turbines submerged on the Kaipara harbour seabed – sufficient power for an area from Albany to Cape Reinga. The project offers significant employment opportunities with estimates of potentially up to 300 new jobs associated with the construction and on-going operation activities and the related wider benefits into both the local and national economies.

“Tidal power has today come a major step closer as a renewable energy option for New Zealand, “ said Dr. Maclaclan. “Tidal power is clean, silent, reliable and sustainable, offering immense advantages in respect of its lack of dependency on weather patterns and it has low environmental impact.”

As well as the direct employment opportunities created , the Kaipara project has the potential to position New Zealand at the international forefront of tidal power generation with the associated downstream benefits.

The Minister’s announcement follows a decision from the Environment Court earlier this year which gave the green light for Crest’s tidal power project following more than five years in the planning and resource consent process. The consent conditions require a baseline environmental monitoring period for 2 years prior to a staged implementation program which will see three turbines installed during the first phase of the project and their environmental effects rigorously monitored and evaluated Subject to the results of the baseline and on-going monitoring, turbines can then be added in incremental stages up to a maximum of 200.

Dr Maclachlan noted that the project has evolved through five years continuous reasearch and investigative processes in which a key focus has been to identify and mitigate any potential adverse affects on the harbour environment. A measured approach to project implementation using adaptive management principles and on-going monitoring is key to the project.

“ We recognise that there are concerns by some in the community about the implementation of new technologies, however it is important to recognise that there are numerous tidal turbine projects under development around the world attracting high levels of both private investment and Government support which demonstrates a firm commitment to the development of this sustainable energy source. New Zealand simply cannot afford not to invest in new energy technologies,” he said.

Crest Energy was founded in July 2005 and is owned by a relatively small group of private investors, the largest of which is Todd Energy. Dr Maclachlan said that the next step for Crest is to raise the necessary preconstruction capital in stages corresponding to project milestones. It is expected to be at least three years before the first turbines are installed with full generation capacity currently planned for 2023.

Kaipara Harbour was selected for the tidal power project because of its strategic importance to electricity supply to the Auckland and Northland regions. It is one of the largest harbours in the world and has substantial tidal flows. The harbour covers an area of more than 900 sq km at high tide, with 3,000 kilometers of shoreline, and some 8,000 million cubic metres of water passes in and out of the harbour everyday. The Kaipara has over double the tidal flow of Manukau Harbour which is New Zealand’s second largest harbour.

ENDS

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