Solving the power problem

By CHRIS DANIELS energy writer

With the latest "power crisis" safely passed for another year, attention is turning to ways of avoiding the next one.

A new energy research institute, the Centre of Excellence in Energy, based at Auckland University's Business School, is being heralded as a crucial contributor towards the search for solutions to energy problems.

Dr John Small, head of economics at the Business School, said he hoped the institute would soon start making a difference to the sector, aided by original, local research.

A multimillion-dollar grant from an anonymous donor (a trust, with no links to the energy industry) has made the institute possible.

Small said the money came at a time of obvious need for more academic work in the energy sector.

"It was a happy coincidence. We certainly identified a need for work in this area."

He said an important first step when looking at the sector was to take a broader view of the business - that it was about energy, not just electricity.

"There's a bit of frustration with policy development and also a real awareness of the energy crunch - not just in electricity but in the gas sector - and the need for some long-range thinking around that."

People should not be concerned that social needs - for reliable energy supply or for sustainable development - would be shut out of the work of the institute, said Small.

"I'd like to see, and what I think everyone would like to see, is ... a public interest approach to things. That should be the objective.

"How do we maximise the benefits to New Zealand as a whole in our energy policy?"

Small hoped scientists, climate-change specialists and the "policy community" would become involved in the work of the institute.

"It's aim is to produce new work, with a focus on New Zealand's problems. It is not pure academic work. There will be some pure academic aspects to it, but that's not the focus."

The institute has funding to provide two PhD scholarships a year. These may come from across the range of disciplines, including engineers, scientists and economists.

Asked how he would judge the success of the institute, Small said: "Ultimately, it will have to make a difference."

"I would expect that within a couple of years, it will have a compelling research agenda on which progress is being actively made."