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We keep seeing examples of farmers taking energy into their own hands, saving money and increasing their resilience and Tim Campbell of Ernest Energy is one of the people helping them do it down south.
At Clover Milk Dairies in Hedgehope, his company has installed a 75kW array on some unproductive land and it's in a relatively unique configuration.
"It was a hedgerow that needed to be knocked down, so essentially we've used that land quite nicely between the main cow lank and main tanker track."
The hot water cylinders all operate during the middle of the day - something we recommend all homes with solar do - the effluent system is now also used between milkings, and the solar also plays a role when it comes to keeping the milk cool.
While the farm doesn't yet have batteries, they can be added later. But McPherson Dairies down the road has installed 100kwH of battery storage that can charge up on cheap night rates or solar during the day and discharge when milking and for cooling.
Campbell says the solar and battery set up there will take around six and a half years to pay off, including borrowing costs and claiming depreciation on the asset.
"But the resilience piece is the hard part to value."
New South Wales gets the memo about the importance of finance and announces scheme offering zero interest loans to households to upgrade to electric stuff; plug-in solar gets the tick of approval to go on sale in the UK soon and the New York Times says it could 'change America'; EVolocity takes electrification to the streets to gets the kids inspired (and eventually employed); a tour of the amazing recycling business Redwood Materials; Think Solar and BYD give it away now; and a skit that cuts close to the bone for many solar dads.
Read moreDownloadAdvances in technology and falling costs mean customer-owned solar and batteries can play a critical role in New Zealand’s energy infrastructure - improving affordability, resilience and sustainability. Multiple trading relationships (MTR) and peer-to-peer trading would enable this potential by increasing competition, customer choice, and innovation in the electricity market, unlocking greater consumer benefits from customer solar and batteries.
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