Because we verify and check invoices on an ongoing basis, the information is accurate and up to date, which means no surprises when it’s time for annual reporting. Our calculations use the latest Ministry of the Environment factors that are available. It’s worth taking a deeper dive into the value Smart Power can add to your carbon emissions reporting. This has the potential to become quite complex – but we take away any headaches.

Tracking other emission sources.

Energy bills are just the beginning. The Smart Power system can also monitor and report your other emissions as well.

It’s simply a matter of providing us with usage information as regularly as you wish to be able to see the data and emissions. These other emissions can be things like petrol, rental cars, taxis, flights, accommodation and waste.

This means all your emission data is in one place and reports can easily be generated. The additional cost to do this can be very low, especially if the data is provided to us in a simple totals format. It then gets uploaded, has the appropriate factors applied, and the carbon emission is calculated.

Just tell us how much detail you require.

How regularly you add extra emission sources, and how often you wish to track and report them, is up to you. Energy use is tracked monthly, so a monthly update can ensure there are no surprises at the end of the year. If you just wish to have an annual total, then all you have to do is provide the information after the year.

The granularity of the emissions tracking is again up to you. For example, you could track emissions per vehicle or employee. However our costs will go up accordingly, based on the time to get the information into the database.

We can take also reports from suppliers such as Fleetcard or travel agencies. Bear in mind, our costs are related to how much detail you require and how regularly you require reports, plus the quality of the information.

The key thing to remember is that if we are already tracking your energy emissions, then for little extra cost you can have your other emission sources added, so reporting is all in one place.

The post Want to track your carbon emissions on an ongoing basis? appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.

We’re still faced with market uncertainty – and this is triggering some interesting side effects on electricity pricing.

One thing is certain – transmission pricing will change.

Even if Tiwai stays, transmission benefits for the smelter could be heading toward $50 million to make it worthwhile. With the lines provider still needing to make a dividend payment to the government, this will need to be collected from North Island customers. Another possibility is that the government will subsidise the smelter in some other way.

If the smelter goes, the increase in transmission costs will then be distributed across all consumers. Either way, someone’s going to pay, and it won’t be the smelter.

Foundation work has begun on the CUWLP lines project, and the target date for its completion is May 2022. Any spare capacity from Manapouri cannot be accessed by the rest of the country before that date.

King coal dethroned in the south?

The prospect of lower South Island electricity prices may be the catalyst to encourage some dairy companies to switch from coal to electricity, and thus take up the slack from Manapouri if the closure eventuates.

But how do you make plans with this uncertainty forming a major component of the business case? The substitution of coal is a great thing for New Zealand’s decarbonising strategy, but it’s a reminder that the smelter closure gives energy customers a breathing space to make good decisions, not forgo plans or think they’ve just dodged a bullet when their electricity contracts expire.

It won’t be a sudden switch.

Tiwai would still need to work through a wind-down period that might take around 12 months. This would be in managed increments, so don’t expect smelter usage to drop to zero overnight. As of now, closure is still scheduled for August 2021 but this may be delayed based on election promises from politicians.

Whether this is the first item on the to-do list of the incoming government, who knows?

Remember, it’s not just about Tiwai.

Gas availability in North Island should improve. However, there are still issues with Pohokura, and even after three months, there is no clear answer for the drop in gas production.

If Tiwai closes as notified, then the business case for new solar, wind and geothermal generation will take a hit for a few years. For these projects to go ahead, New Zealand almost needs the smelter to stay.

Other major users like the NZ Refinery and NZ Steel are either reviewing their current usage or have already committed to operation reforms. As was the case with the smelter, this too could bring about lower electricity prices.

Hydro storage levels are sitting at about 95% of average for this time of year, compared with around 79% as at 12 July 2020.

So where are we today?

A market drop was expected, and it certainly occurred. Today we have more water in our lakes, a smelter that’s still on track to close, politicians that have promised to negotiate to keep it open, and a forward electricity price that is right back to where it was on 8 July 2020, before the closure announcement.

Apart from election promises, there is still nothing substantive that should affect pricing for the remainder of 2020 and into 2021. With a snow pack that’s one of the lowest on record, we still need rain over our hydro catchments before we can expect to see electricity prices soften.

Overall, the electricity market is still grappling with a bunch of ‘what if’ scenarios. Until we get some clear direction – be it from the smelter or the government – it’s still a bit of a punt. Time and rain remain key factors. We will keep you updated as developments occur.

The post Smelter uncertainty has knock-on effects. appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.

In July 2020, NZSA (i.e. Tiwai Point smelter) announced the closure of the smelter in August 2021. This was a big disruptor because Tiwai uses around 13% of New Zealand’s total electricity. A few weeks after this announcement, the ASX Futures (NZ electricity prices) fell significantly from Q3 2021 onwards, and we hoped that we were seeing an end to the volatile and high electricity prices experienced over the last two years.

However, since our last market update, persistent lobbying, which may or may not be connected to electioneering, led to speculation that the smelter could continue operations beyond August 2021. This market speculation was confirmed on 31 August 2020, which immediately resulted in New Zealand electricity prices on the ASX Futures climbing straight back to where they had been prior to the initial closure announcement. Based on these price movements, we calculate that the market is factoring in the cost of the smelter remaining at $800M per annum.

Weathering the weather factor

As if the smelter situation was not frustrating enough, the prevailing conditions which caused the volatility in pricing through 2020 and into 2021 continue. Generation options continue to be limited due to low rainfall, inconsistent wind patterns, and the continuing high price for natural gas for electricity generation.

If you have ever tried to wade through the subtle differences between retailer offers, or understand the range of offerings and which will benefit you the most, you’ll know it can be next to impossible to pin down savings with any confidence. Factoring in the Tiwai smelter situation, and the impact hydrology has on electricity pricing, only makes the decision even more opaque.

This is where Smart Power’s experience and industry relationships add value. We navigate and manage energy procurement for our clients, and make sure your supply arrangements match your operational requirements. Take the hassle out of energy procurement and leave your staff to focus on their core business. Contact Smart Power to find out about cost-effective energy procurement, and how we can help you add value to your business.

The post Market update October 2020 appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.

Here’s a high level view:

• Transmission pricing will change again.
• Transmission line development is 6-12 months away being able to redirect that much power northwards.
• Tiwai will provide at least 12 months’ wind down. This will be in managed increments that increase electricity supply to the market.
• Gas availability in the North Island should improve.

Some questions that may come into focus over the next year or two:

• Solar options – will they continue?
• Will Contact develop its geothermal field in Taupo, or will this resource be put on hold, or even cancelled?
• Will gas-fired generation in the North Island close earlier than expected, and will this affect the reliability of electricity supply?
• If North island gas-fired generation does decline, will this increase the volatility of spot prices (whilst we hope reducing the average cost)?
• Will the government step in at the 11^th hour and save the day?

The Smart Power view.

While there are no guarantees, we expect a reserved initial market response.   Then perhaps one retailer will blink and prices will fall, perhaps for 2021 and beyond, but most likely not for the remainder of 2020. 

It will be in the retailers’ and generators’ interests to hold prices up. Right now, there is nothing that should affect short-term pricing, although in this market the tail can wag the dog, albeit usually upwards not down.

South Island pricing would logically be far more affected than North Island pricing. The question remains whether the closure will really happen or whether the Government will swoop in to save the day. It’s an election year, after all.

Another factor is transmission infrastructure. Will the works required to effectively and efficiently transport power northwards be accelerated or will a ‘wait and see’ stance be adopted?

Overall, we think that this is a major and quite unprecedented announcement. It must affect prices one way or another, but we don’t know when and by how much at this early stage.

As we hear and learn more, we’ll do our best to keep you updated.

The post Stop Press: Will the Tiwai Point closure affect electricity prices? appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.

Working with Energy Select (the procurement brand operating under the Smart Power umbrella), Eden Park Trust was able to restructure its electricity and gas contracts to control costs during a time of steeply rising energy prices. Here’s how.

Urgency plus complexity equals risk.

Eden Park Trust was already working with Smart Power to manage tenant billing. In late 2019, the Trust received notification from its energy supplier that the contract was due to renew. A new schedule of charges was attached.

The problem from the Trust’s point of view was that it was impossible to tell whether the deal was a good one. With a decision imminent, CFO Brett Winstanley asked us to take a closer look.

“Energy Select recommended a review of all the different types of contracts we had, to get a holistic view,” Brett says. “As well as separate gas and energy bills, we have contracts for Time Of Use (TOU) and Non Half Hour (NHH) connections. It’s a bit complicated, and that was the problem.”

We suggested putting all the contracts out for tender rather than simply rolling over the current arrangements. This made the business more attractive to energy suppliers. Energy Select managed the process and handled negotiations – but that was only half the job.

Competition and complication.

The Trust received 12 proposals from energy providers, each one offering a different combination of terms, rates, prices and options. In other words, it was impossible to compare apples with apples. Expert analysis was required.

“We got Energy Select to distil all the proposals into a report our team could use to make a decision,” says Brett Winstanley. “It’s an extremely complicated market, and companies need expert guidance to avoid expensive mistakes. We needed to understand what was going on in the market and which contracts would work best for all parts of our business.

“It was about translating all the data and relating it to a complex environment, so we could make the most informed decision.”

A win for Eden Park.

The comprehensive report we created enabled Eden Park Trust to confidently select three new energy suppliers.

One goal of the exercise was to ensure the Trust obtained the best terms for its electricity and gas connections, so it wouldn’t be blindsided if market conditions changed one or two years down the track. As Brett Winstanley says, price is only part of the story. You need to know whether you’ll be stuck with an unsuitable arrangement because of a lack of understanding when the contract was signed.

“We got an outcome that suited our circumstances and a deal we were comfortable with,” he says. “It gives you confidence to know that you’re dealing with people who understand why prices are where they are – and can explain the market forces driving them.”

The post How we helped Eden Park score a better deal. appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.

Smart Power has the emission factors as published by the Ministry of the Environment or Australian NGERS equivalent loaded into our system. So any utility recorded by us automatically has its greenhouse gas emission calculated.

For most clients, this will be electricity, gas and LPG on a monthly basis. Other utilities can also be loaded, such as petrol, flights, taxis, coal, wood, waste water, refrigerants. Some clients give us these annually and these are input so reports can be provided. Other utilities can be input monthly as well, depending on how regularly the client wishes to monitor total emissions.

As a Smart Power client, you can select which emission factors to use. This is most relevant for electricity, which changes considerably in New Zealand due to the amount of rain feeding into hydro lakes.

The MFE factors are often published several years behind. Thus for accuracy some clients prefer a quarterly factor.

The second area where Smart Power can assist is reporting the emissions on the basis of the MFE voluntary guidelines for business. These guidelines are based on ISO 140641.

This is more a more complex exercise as it requires the organisational boundaries to be agreed. A base year must be established with systems ensuring the accurate collection and accounting for all the emissions. A detailed report can then be provided with breakdowns of the emissions.

The key to success here is to improve the collection process so that the following year it is a much simpler piece of work.  

Smart Power has two staff members who have been trained in assisting organisations to do this. Please contact us if you would like to know more.

The post Aiming for sustainability? We can help appeared first on Smart Power Energy NZ.