The Government is expected to make an announcement soon about the future of liquified natural gas imports, which Energy Minister Simeon Brown says are needed to firm up New Zealand’s electricity generation.
Soaring wholesale electricity prices are causing turmoil in the energy sector.
Brown spoke to Q+A for a wide-ranging interview on Saturday, where he discussed the ongoing energy crisis, local government and issues in his other ministerial portfolios.
The minister acknowledged there had been a lack of investment in generation capacity by electricity gentailers over the past decade.
“I think we haven’t seen as much investment back into generation as we should have from the gentailers,” he told Q+A’s Jack Tame.
But thus far, the coalition Government hasn’t considered structural changes that might force a greater separation between gentailers’ buying and selling divisions.
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“At this stage, the Government’s sole focus is on making sure we’ve got enough supply into the market so that we’ve got the energy New Zealand needs.”
Part of the plan to do so included wanting to import more liquified natural gas (LNG).
“What we’re looking at are what are the barriers that the Government needs to remove in order to allow the market to invest and build that.”
One thing the Government isn’t considering however is additional solar options.
Advocates argue that rooftop solar could be rolled out quickly and combined with grid battery solutions, allowing hydro and domestic gas to be reserved for periods without sun. Brown said other options continue to be needed to “firm” supply.
“Solar panels, as much as it’s a critical component of our future generation capacity as a country, doesn’t provide that security of supply to the degree that’s needed,” he said.
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“Gas is critical to ensuring we can firm intermittent sources and that’s what countries around the world are doing”
Speaking to Q+A, the Energy Minister said he hadn’t received advice directly comparing the rollout of rooftop solar with LNG.
Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air