More accolades for King Country solar project

Members of the Māniaroa Marae project team involved in the solar-sharing project.

Accolades keep coming for a collaborative King Country energy initiative which has deployed solar energy on two local marae.

Alongside Te Nehenehehui, The Lines Company (TLC) won the Best Community Energy Project at the Sustainable Energy Association of New Zealand (SEANZ) Awards on Friday night.

It’s the second time the project has been nationally recognised, having won the Community Initiative of the Year at the 2023 New Zealand Energy Excellence Awards.

The project between The Lines Company and Te Nehenehenui (Ngāti Maniapoto) has seen solar panels installed on the Māniaroa Marae north of Mōkau and the Taarewaanga Marae in Ōtorohanga.

The solar energy powers the entire marae infrastructure with some energy left over. That excess energy is then gifted by the marae to kuia and kaumatua associated with the marae, some months covering up to 90% of their energy needs.

On average, each recipient household has seen average annual energy savings of around $500.

The project, co-designed using kaupapa Māori principles, also provided education on how to be more energy efficient, both at the marae, and at home, where energy assessments were undertaken.

TLC chief executive Mike Fox said it was fantastic for a King Country initiative to be recognised again but the more meaningful payback will come from potential long-term benefits across the rohe.

He noted the award criteria said the winning project must “contribute to the social fabric of a community, enriching its people and inhabitants’ lives using renewable energy. It must have helped the local community and improved their way of life with measurable and meaningful outcomes.”

Solar panels on the wharekai at the Taarewaanga Marae in Ōtorohanga.

“There is no doubt it did all that, and more, so we’re proud of making a difference,” Fox said.

“It has made two local marae – key community infrastructure – much more resilient. That’s really important.

“It has also helped TLC better understand how we can use solar, a renewable resource, to address some of the challenges we have, particularly in remote parts of our network.

“Our opportunity now is to continue working alongside partners like Te Nehenehenui so we can potentially scale up the project.”

Te Nehenehenui general manager Ashleigh Turner was at the awards event on Friday, noting others were unable to attend because of the death of the Māori Kingi, Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII.

TLC accepted the award, acknowledging Te Nehenehenui as active partners in the project.