Approximately 40% of primary energy (Heat and power) is from renewable energy sources in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. Approximately 80% of electricity comes from renewable energy, primarily

hydropower Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a w ...

and geothermal power.

Renewable energy by type

Renewable electricity

Renewable electricity Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

is primarily from

. In 2017, 82% of the electricity generated in New Zealand came from renewable sources. In September 2007, former

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Helen Clark Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008, and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...

announced a national target of 90 percent renewable electricity by 2025, with

wind energy Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller impact on the environment than burning fossil fuels. Historically, w ...

to make up much of that increase.

Solar power

Solar technologies in New Zealand only became affordable alternatives in the mid-2010s, compared to previous renewable offerings. The uptake in the residential and commercial market, though slow, has increased steadily. As with all renewable options, price of generation is key to the sustainability. It is only these recent changes in pricing that may see solar generation plants in the future.

Solar hot water

Installation of solar hot water heating systems is increasing in New Zealand due in part to government incentive schemes.

Bioenergy

According to th
New Zealand Bioenergy Association
more than 10 percent of New Zealand's energy currently comes from bioenergy.

Biodiesel Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat ( tallow), soybean oil, or some other vegetable oil ...

bioethanol Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a hyd ...

and biomass (generally in the form of wood) are all used in New Zealand as a source of renewable energy.

Biomass

New Zealand is rich in biomass from wood and waste which can be used as fuel. Biomass is sourced primarily from in-forest and

wood processing Wood processing is an engineering discipline in the wood industry comprising the production of forest products, such as pulp and paper, construction materials, and tall oil. Paper engineering is a subfield of wood processing. The major wood pro ...

residues and municipal wood waste. This can be processed into pellets, chip or hog fuel. Wood fuels are sustainable and carbon-neutral and can provide New Zealand with a greener economy, less dependent on fossil fuels. New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment data shows wood fuel is the cleanest energy consumed for industrial process heat by a large margin. The Bioenergy Association of New Zealand has investigated the potential for greenhouse gas reduction brought about by switching from fossil fuel to wood biomass for industrial heat.https://www.bioenergy.org.nz/documents/resource/Information-Sheets/IS32-GHG-reduction-using-wood-energy.pdf It assessed that by 2050 New Zealand could more than double 2017 biomass energy supply, providing up to 27% of NZ's energy needs and realising a 15% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Milk processing provides current examples of biomass use in industry: * reducing coal use, through co-firing * replacing coal use Biomass is also used for heating in hospitals, schools and universities.

Pumped Energy Storage

When the water in lakes used for hydro-electricity runs low, coal and gas fired power stations have been used to make up the shortfall. In 2021 the Ardern government invested $11.5 million to investigate the feasibility of storing energy by pumping water to Lake Onslow in Central Otago. The lake could store up to 8 terawatt-hours of electricity or approximately one fifth of the country's consumption. The pumping would use power when it is plentiful and cheap, including wind power. Critics have argued that the scheme could upset the market by placing a cap on electricity prices.

References

External links

Renewable energy
at EECA
New Zealand to be carbon neutral by 2020
{{Renewable energy by country, state=collapsed