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The idea of sharing excess energy with your community has long been a dream of solar and battery enthusiasts and that idea is starting to blossom. Microgrids have been proven to work in remote Australian regions; some marae in New Zealand are helping to reduce bills for people in their communities; Kāinga Ora has successfully tested the concept of solar sharing in social housing; and Bright Spark Tama Toki is attempting to bring the idea to life on his home island of Aotea / Great Barrier.
Aotea has no power grid, but what it does have is a strong sense of community, a willingness to share resources and a need for self-sufficiency, so Toki has developed a small peer-to-peer network of homes with solar and batteries to test the concept. The cheapest electricity you can generate is on your own roof, and the second cheapest should be from your neighbour's roof. And when you add batteries into the equation, it makes that energy more useable when it's most needed.
Toki, who is also the founder of successful skincare brand Aotea, is showing how modern technology can improve energy security and reduce energy poverty. And just as New Zealand could be a demonstration project for the world to follow, Aotea could be a demonstration project for other off-grid islands to follow.
Political Power has gone local! Dr Nick Smith, mayor of Nelson and ex-National Party minister, is an early adopter when it comes to electric machines but, through his efforts with the council and his close involvement with the Ratepayer Assistance Scheme, he's also embracing one of Rewiring's core mantras: once you've electrified your own life, electrify someone else's life, too.
Read moreDownloadWhether it's the growing number of electric buses, new electric trains for the lower North Island and City Rail Link, or new electric ferries, we love seeing more electric transport options in our big cities. It's also good to see some of our smaller cities like Palmerston North, Timaru and Nelson going electric and, as is almost always the case, the drivers reckon it's better on electrons. At the Electrify Nelson expo, we spoke with one driver Lee about the city's electric buses. And he definitely wouldn't go back to diesel.
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