NZ Super has teamed up with a Danish investment fund to look at wind generation in the South Taranaki Bight. Photo / NZ Herald
NZ Super has teamed up with a Danish investment fund to look at wind generation in the South Taranaki Bight. Photo / NZ Herald
The New Zealand Super Fund has teamed up with renewable energy investment giant Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) to explore the potential of large-scale wind power generation off the South Taranaki coast.
A newly-established jointly held company will manage the feasibility study and development, NZ Super and CIP said in a statement.
Subject to feasibility, an initial planned one gigawatt (GW) development would represent over 11 per cent of New Zealand's current electricity demand capacity and could power more than 650,000 homes, the partners said.
The project could later expand to 2GW, helping to meet strong projected growth in demand for electricity in New Zealand.
CIP, which has $25 billion in assets under management, says it is a global leader in greenfield renewable energy and offshore wind including about 30GW of offshore wind projects under development, construction and operation across North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania.
The investment in the South Taranaki project is part of a broader project development pipeline for CIP's upcoming flagship fund, "CI V".
The project will be CIP's first investment in New Zealand and follows NZ Super Fund's $208 million commitment to its new energy transition fund - CI ETF I - last year.
CIP and NZ Super said they are in the early stages of project feasibility evaluation, which includes wind resource measurement, designing detailed environmental impact assessments, and examining industry potential and training needs for the Taranaki region.
NZ Super chief executive Matt Whineray said offshore wind energy had the potential to be an attractive commercial opportunity that aligns with the fund's climate change investment strategy.
"We are in the unique position of being able to attract best-in-class global partners on infrastructure developments that create positive environmental and social outcomes while delivering financial returns for New Zealanders through the fund."
NZ Super chief executive Matt Whineray. Photo / NZME
Whineray said the climate crisis is driving a global shift in how countries produce energy.
"We are focused on opportunities that allow us to apply our long-term investment capital to support this shift and the fund's own public commitment to being net zero by 2050.
"While this proposal is still at a very early, exploratory stage, we are confident it could help New Zealand's transition away from fossil fuels and towards home-grown clean energy."
CIP partner Michael Hannibal said New Zealand had world-class offshore wind fundamentals – high average wind speeds and relatively shallow waters close to transmission infrastructure.
"New Zealand has a prime opportunity to utilise its natural resources, in this case offshore wind, to power the country into the future."
Hannibal said the Taranaki region had the skills and know-how to make offshore wind a success.
Feasibility work for the project is expected to take about 24 months.
Should it proceed, and subject to relevant regulatory approvals, CIP and NZ Super Fund could deliver power by the end of the decade, making a significant contribution to New Zealand's ambitions for 100 per cent renewable energy by 2030.
Demand for electricity is expected to grow over the coming decades as New Zealand shifts from fossil fuel energy to renewable forms.
Electricity grid operator Transpower believes demand will grow from 43 TWh (terawatt hours) today to 70 TWh by 2050, primarily from electrifying transport and process heat.
New Zealand has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
CIP said its approach involves realising a profitable green energy transition based on high environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards.
The Danish company is majority owned by its four senior partners.
Among its projects, CIP is involved in offshore wind farm - Beatrice - in Scotland, which has a capacity of 588 megawatts.
Located 13.5km from the coastline in the Outer Moray Firth (Scotland) on the north western point of the Smith Bank - Beatrice is the largest operational offshore wind farm in Scottish waters.
Steep falls in the cost of renewable electricity generation are driving a surge in new projects.
New Zealand now has 19 wind farms, with two more under construction, generating 6 per cent of the country's electricity consumption, or 690 megawatts (MW) of power.
Solar power is also on the rise. As of the end of April last year, New Zealand had 154MW of installed solar capacity, 32MW of which had been installed over the previous 12 months.
The $58 billion NZ Super Fund is a global investment fund established by the New Zealand Government to help pre-fund universal superannuation.
Its domestic investments include stakes in Kaingaroa Timberlands, Datacom, Kiwibank, Fidelity Life and NZ Gourmet, as well as significant investment in a range of locally listed companies.
