7. STEVE CHADWICK (Labour—Rotorua) Link to this
to the Minister of Energy
What reports, if any, has he received on plans to build renewable electricity generation in New Zealand?
Hon DAVID PARKER (Minister of Energy) Link to this
Contact Energy has announced plans to invest $2 billion in renewable geothermal and wind energy, in preference to using Ōtāhuhu C. I am also advised that Contact Energy’s share price rose upon the announcement, showing that renewables make both environmental and economic sense. The Government’s climate change policies are clearly working.
How will Contact Energy’s extra renewable generation help New Zealand towards carbon neutrality?
By decreasing the proportion of electricity that comes from emission-producing thermal electricity, we take another step towards carbon neutrality. As John Ashton, the UK’s most senior climate change diplomat, said today, carbon neutrality is an achievable goal over time. Yesterday Meridian Energy attained carbon neutrality. Despite the National Party’s wish to the contrary, carbon neutrality is breaking out all over the place.
Gerry BrownleeWhy does the Minister keep repeating the Prime Minister’s carbon neutrality mantra, when in 2006 electricity generated from renewable sources was the lowest on record, a 210 megawatt wind farm was delayed by over 15 months because of Resource Management Act difficulties, the second-biggest thermal plant in New Zealand’s history is about to be commissioned, and Contact Energy has put the strong proviso that it will go ahead only if the Resource Management Act does not get in its road; what is the Minister doing about that?
It appears that the National Party is sad that the Government is successful in actually bringing forward renewables. Indeed, I quote from Mr Baldwin, the chief executive of Contact Energy, who said that “with Government support for the consenting of geothermal and wind development, he believed the Government’s goal of meeting New Zealand’s energy growth from renewable forms of energy could be realised.”
I seek leave to table documents showing that New Zealand’s carbon emissions have risen astronomically in the last 7 years, and the trend shows no sign of turning around, at all.
Madam SPEAKER
Hon Phil GoffIn the Minister’s promotion of renewable energy to reduce global warming, what support has he received from the National Party, given the statement made in this House not so long ago by its co-leader John Key that “… even if one believes in global warming”—
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. We have a leader; his name is John Key. We are sick to death of Labour members’ smart alec behaviour in their reference to a co-leader, and we want it to stop. [ Interruption] Much as the House was refused the right to refer to “Helengrad” and the “Republic of the Labour Party”, so, too, this will stop.
Please be seated. I ask members to refer to other members by their correct names and titles. Would the member please start again.
In his promotion of renewable energy to reduce global warming, what support has he received from the National Party, given the statement made in this House not very long ago by Mr John Key that “… even if one believes in global warming—and I am somewhat suspicious of it— … we will see billions and billions of dollars poured into fixing something that we are not even sure is a problem.”?
Indeed that quote does illustrate the difficulty we have in garnering support from National members for sensible policy in this area. It is plain that they remain unconvinced as to whether climate change is real, as evidenced by that quote. Dr Smith last week said the Hon Phil Goff was misquoting when—as Mr Goff just repeated then—he was absolutely accurately quoting, and those comments are irreconcilable with later comments from Mr Key saying he believed in climate change and always has.
I seek leave to table the National Party document on the environment released last October, which now appears to be the source document for David Parker’s climate change policy.
I seek leave to table in the House Mr Key’s comment quoted in Hansard that he is suspicious of global warming and that he is not even sure it is a problem.
Peter BrownI raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. Through you might I respectfully remind the House that it has become the convention that members raise and table documents at the end of supplementary questions, unless there is a particularly good reason for doing otherwise.
Noting all this debate on renewables, will the Minister clarify the position on what will happen if Huntly coal-fired power station is shut down—as is being advocated by Greenpeace; would New Zealand’s electricity supply suffer, and what effect would such a closure have on climate change?
If a price on emissions is introduced into the economy, the cost on per unit of electricity output will be most expensive for the coal-fired Huntly power station, and it is likely to change the relative despatch order of different generation sources so we may see Huntly being despatched less often as a consequence. Nonetheless, we will be reliant for some years to come on electricity produced by Huntly.
I seek leave to table two documents. The first is Contact Energy’s announcement of $2 billion in renewables where it says that the Government’s vision of achieving growth in electricity from renewables can be met.
The second document I would like to table is Meridian Energy’s announcement in respect of having achieved certified carbon neutrality.
Hon Dr Nick Smith Link to this
I seek leave to table the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s latest deforestation figures released today that show that last year we lost more trees than in any year of history since 1946.