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"The cheapest unit of gas is the one you do not use,” EECA chief executive Marcos Pelenur said in a piece on the NZ Herald. Europe's response to severe gas shortages after the start of the Ukraine war was focused on efficiency, flexibility and heat pumps and as New Zealand deals with its own shortage, we can learn from it.
As he said:
“Savings from heat pumps [in Europe] and reduced wastage largely offset the loss of gas supply, and drove a 6% total drop in all energy consumption, demonstrating the potential of demand-side action,” he told the Herald.
“They are very different contexts, but are similar conditions in the sense that from the Ukraine-Russia war there was a sudden gas shortage, and then they had to quickly pivot to deal with this gas crunch.
“And so specifically it was essentially heat pumps and then identifying and reducing waste.
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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