In New Zealand, most electricity comes from hydroelectric and geothermal power. However, fossil fuel power stations are still used to maintain a continuous supply during peak demand. Rather than mine and utilize relatively high grade and cleaner New Zealand coal, NZ imports comparatively high sulphur, high ash coal from Indonesia, negating the environmental benefits of not mining locally. With the introduction of large battery installations, reliance on fossil fuels for energy generation can be reduced and eventually eliminated in New Zealand.
Contact Energy has teamed up with electric car company Tesla to build a grid-scale 100-megawatt battery at Glenbrook, at a cost of up to $163m. The company said the battery would enhance Contact’s renewable-energy flexibility and provide enough electricity to meet peak winter demand for 44,000 homes for more than two hours.
unknownx500
