Campbell says coal stockpiles vital for electricity

Coal stockpiles are just as vital in maintaining New Zealand's electricity supply as hydro storage lakes, according to Genesis Power's thermal energy manager Michael Campbell.

Mr Campbell was speaking yesterday at a Waikato District Council hearing into a Solid Energy application to create two stockpiles of 250,000 tonnes of coal at its Huntly West mine, 3km northwest of Huntly.

The application is opposed by the Hetherington Rd Residents' Group, which has major concerns over noise, dust, visual and traffic issues.

Mr Campbell told the hearing the Huntly Power Station was the single largest generation complex within the New Zealand electricity network.

But its historic consumption of 80 percent gas and 20 percent coal had been reversed to 80 percent coal and 20 percent gas in recent times.

"Without a readily available coal supply, the station will be unable to operate effectively and meet the ongoing electricity demand in the upper half of New Zealand," Mr Campbell said.

Stockpiles at the station has been sufficient in the past, but the higher level of consumption meant there was insufficient local coal to meet its needs, and it was anticipated 1 million tonnes would need to be imported annually to meet generation requirements, he said.

Under legislation enacted this year, Genesis Energy was obligated to hold reserve fuel capacity equivalent to 3-4 months of generation.

"The Huntly stockpiles are the only significant secure strategic fuel reserves for electricity generation that can be guaranteed in New Zealand at present," Mr Campbell said.

But there was not enough land at Huntly Power Station for the stockpile.

A switch from road to rail transport for imported Indonesian coal arriving from Tauranga was also dependent on stockpiling.

"Without this ability to store large quantities of coal, the rail operation becomes redundant, and the station will become reliant on the existing trucking operation to meet its coal demands," Mr Campbell said.

The hearing also heard there could be a future application for a "stockpile C" at Huntly West.

The hearing was due to finish today.

- NZPA