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DID YOU KNOW THAT SMART POWER OFFERS...
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Energy Auditing
Energy audits are our specialty. At Smart Power we can tailor these audits to your needs or run the audit in accordance with industry standards. Our accredited auditors have considerable experience within the commercial, industrial and statutory authority sectors.
The audit reports outline how energy is consumed on a site and identify recommendations for potential savings. The recommendations are presented in terms of cost benefit, implementation and projected annual savings. Generally the recommendations in our audits lead to potential savings of 10%-30%.
We can also arrange and manage the implementation of the audit recommendations.
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EVER WONDERED ABOUT....
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Diesel Generators?
A diesel generator is the combination of a diesel engine with an electrical generator (often an alternator) to generate electrical energy. A "Genset" is a diesel generator coupled with support devices such as control systems.
A modern diesel generator will consume between 0.28 and 0.4 litres of fuel per kilowatt hour at the generator terminals. A key point to note is that the electrical energy produced is not cheap, at 43 to 62 cents per kWh (diesel at $1.54/litre). In addition to this you also need to factor in lifetime engine maintenance, which is approximately $0.02/kWh.
Diesel generators are given 3 different ratings:
* Standby Rating:
Output applicable for supplying emergency power
* Prime (Unlimited Running Time) Rating: Output available with varying load for an unlimited time. Typical application - where the generator is the sole source of power (eg: ship, remote town etc) * Base Load (Continuous) Rating: Applicable for supplying power continuously to a constant load up to the full output rating for unlimited hours. Typical application - a generator paralleled with the mains and continuously feeding power Generators need to be sized specifically for their primary use (as per ratings above), electrical load characteristics at the site (which are determined by the equipment they will be powering) and potentially even the sites environmental conditions, such as altitude and temperature.
It is critical to size a diesel genset correctly so as to avoid shortage of power (for obvious reasons) and low-load. Operating a generator at below 70% of its rated load regularly, through oversizing the generator or poor use, can cause serious damage to the generator through internal glazing (or piling) and carbon build up which is very costly to repair.
A common set-up for a generator is that when a power cut occurs (the site is disconnected from the grid), the generator starts up and supplies what-ever load is connected within the site. Using this type of generator for anything other than back-up means you have to simulate a power cut. |
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Greetings!
Welcome to this edition of "Get Smart", Smart Power's regular bulletin. Get Smart provides a round-up of energy news and views from New Zealand, Australia and around the world.
In "Company Voice" this month, director Peter McKeown talks about the ways that the Electricity Authority Levy is 'passed through' by electricity retailers.
As always your feedback is most welcome. |
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NEW ZEALAND ENERGY HEADLINES
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Smelter power review 'bolt from blue' for asset sales
Meridian Energy's announcement that it had been approached by New Zealand's biggest power user, Rio Tinto, to discuss potential changes to its supply contract has created uncertainty for the Government's plans to partly privatise the three power generators, analysts said. Read more
NZ company turns on first Tokelau solar system
A New Zealand solar company has switched on the first of three solar power systems being installed on the South Pacific nation of Tokelau.
Tokelau is made up of three atolls - Fakaofo, Nukunonu and Atafu - with Fakaofo the first to become fully solar powered this week. Read more
Emitters' carbon bill dropping as international prices collapse
The collapse in international carbon prices over the past year has seen emitters switch from domestic to imported sources to meet their obligations, figures released yesterday indicate.
With carbon now trading in the $4 to $5 range, a trade-exposed industrial emitter classified as highly emissions-intensive would face a carbon bill of less than 1 per cent of its turnover. Read more
Low hydro inflows knock Meridian results The lowest inflows in 79 years to two of Meridian Energy's two key hydro catchments saw New Zealand's largest electricity generator cut generation sharply in the three months to June 30. Meridian generated a total of 1,995 Gigawatt hours of hydro-electricity in the three months, compared with 2,228 in the three months to the end of March. Read more Cool solar water reception from Environment Commissioner Solar water heaters are not a "silver bullet" for tackling climate change because they are of little help when they are needed most, a report has found. The 75-page report from Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Jan Wright looked at the extent to which household solar water heaters could help to reduce the need to build more carbon-emitting fossil fuel power plants. Dr Wright found solar water heaters reduced carbon emissions but were not a "silver bullet" because they did not flatten electricity peaks. Read more
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AUSTRALIAN ENERGY HEADLINES
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Gas projects to push up electricity prices
Wholesale electricity prices will remain weak for the next couple of years, but domestic gas prices are expected to surge in the future, pushing up electricity bills, as Queensland's export gas projects come on stream.
Speaking at a conference earlier today, TruEnergy managing director Richard McIndoe made the forecast, although he expects that eventually the development of shale gas reserves will help contain electricity prices towards the end of the decade. Read more
PM starts power war with states over electricity prices
Julia Gillard will pressure the states to rein in rising electricity prices as she accuses jurisdictions such as NSW of gouging consumers with ''unacceptable'' increases in recent years.
In a declaration of war designed to sheet the overwhelming blame for power price increases on the states, not the carbon price, the Prime Minister will describe the increases of the past four years and for this financial year as socially and economically unjust. Read more
Coalition split over energy price rises
The Coalition energy spokesman, Ian MacFarlane, has contradicted his leader Tony Abbott's claim that carbon tax is the only cause of power price rises, saying the Coalition would ''forcefully encourage'' the states to privatise their electricity networks and would listen to calls to rein in overinvestment. Yesterday Mr Abbott said the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, had ''fabricated'' the entire idea that overinvestment in electricity ''wires and poles'' had caused price rises beyond the carbon tax, and refused to commit the Coalition to regulatory reform. Read more
Study rates nuclear a cheap source of energy Nuclear energy is among the cheapest power sources available to Australia under a carbon price, rating alongside solar and wind as one of the least expensive options, says a world-first study. The study by the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics found both nuclear and solar photovoltaics would be more cost-competitive than previously thought. Read more
Navy tries different sea power The Australian Navy's decision to power its big fleet base near Perth by waves may be just the beginning of mining the ocean's potential for the nation's energy needs. A study by federal science agency CSIRO has confirmed the navy is steering the right course by signing up with Western Australia's Carnegie Wave for a system that is expected to supply all of HMAS Stirling's electricity by the end of next year. The study concluded that waves could provide 10 per cent of Australia's energy needs by 2050 - enough to power a city the size of Melbourne - with further potential from tides, currents and thermal energy. Read more |
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INTERNATIONAL ENERGY HEADLINES
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Bringing power to the people - and heat as well
In some isolated clinics in parts of Africa, the electricity needed to power lights and medical devices is generated by expensive imported diesel fuel; the water supply can be so cold in winter that health workers can't even wash their hands properly. But a startup company established by a team of MIT students and alumni aims to change that.
The patented technology they developed uses a mirrored parabolic trough to capture sunlight, heating fluid in a pipe along the mirror's centerline. This fluid then powers a sort of air conditioner in reverse: Instead of using electricity to pump out cold air on one side and hot air on the other, it uses the hot fluid and cold air to generate electricity. At the same time, the hot fluid can be used to provide heat and hot water - or, by adding a separate chiller stage, to produce cooling as well. Read more
Britain's biggest solar farm launches with 30 acres of panels
The UK's largest solar farm has opened and will produce enough electricity to power 1,000 homes - even although the black panels will stretch across miles of farmland.
Energy industry leaders gathered to see the project, which is made of 1,800 solar PV panels mounted on 5.6 miles of frames, unveiled for the first time. Read more
Japan Retreats from a Nuclear-Free Future In the wake of the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe, Japan turned its attention to renewable energies. Such technologies, however, will take years to develop. In the mean time, the country is importing increased amounts of fossil fuels -- and flirting with a return to nuclear energy. Read more Doubts Rising over German Switch to Renewables Chancellor Angela Merkel outlined a grand vision for an energy revolution a year ago, shortly after her government had decided to shut down all nuclear reactors by 2022 in a spectacular about-face following the Fukushima accident. Germany was to put itself at the forefront of the fight against global warming by radically expanding the use of renewable energy to 35 percent of total power consumption by 2020, rising to 80 percent by 2050. Currently, it represents 20 percent of the country's energy mix. But now two ministers, Environment Minister Peter Altmaier and Economy Minister Philipp Rösler, have cast doubt whether the targets are reachable and said their priority is to make sure that electricity prices don't rise too much. Read more
California's Hydropower Stations to Generate Less Electricity in Summer as Climate Warms California's hydropower is vulnerable to climate change, a University of California, Riverside scientist has advised policymakers in "Our Changing Climate," a report released July 31 by the California Natural Resources Agency and the California Energy Commission (CEC). "Climate change is expected to affect the quantity and timing of water flow in the state," explained Kaveh Madani, a former postdoctoral research scholar in UC Riverside's Water Science and Policy Center (WSPC), who led a research project on climate change effects on hydropower production, demand, and pricing in California. "Under dry climate warming, the state will receive less precipitation, with most of it as rain instead of snow, impacting hydropower supply and operations." Read more |
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THE COMPANY VOICE
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Peter McKeown has worked in the construction, property management, energy acquisition and management industries for the past 30 years. The knowledge and experience gained over this period is now being used to assist Smart Power clients manage their energy use.
Since joining Smart Power in 2001, Peter McKeown has been responsible for developing Energy Management Services for clients within Smart Power. Peter has been responsible for the development and the day-to-day operation of the bill verification software and monitoring and targeting data bases and processes to ensure that client's accounts are validated, verified and paid on time. Recently Peter has managed the development of e-Smart; the web based reporting to customers.
The EA Levy Some retailers are more equitable than others when it comes to "passing through" the EA Levy.
The Electricity Industry provides for the recovery of the annual operating costs of the Electricity Authority (Authority), and specified activities of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs. The Authority is an independent Crown entity responsible for regulating the New Zealand electricity market.
The Authority and EECA are required to consult industry participants regarding their proposed budget requirements for the coming year. The levy rates used to charge industry participants are then set to reflect the budget, and are published.
These levies are then passed on to consumers by their power companies (retailers), however the levy rate passed on is set by each retailer individually. I think that this levy should be a transparent cost that is uniform for all customers just like GST and it should not be up to retailers to decide how much they will charge, however this is certainly not the case. For this reason you need to include this cost in any calculations when comparing energy pricing between retailers.
There are a number of reasons why retailers charge differently, but the net result for consumers is that you may end up paying more with some suppliers than with others.
So when considering who is the provider offering the lowest overall delivered price, how each retailer "passes through" the Authority's levies needs to be included as a factor of this consideration.
It should be noted that in all of the past 6 years the Authority levy wash-up has been a credit so one would assume that the amount charged should not be any higher than the amount set by the Authority with effect 1 July 2012 - 0.011c/kWh. Unfortunately this isn't the case and the table below shows the latest Electricity Authority Levies being charged by each retailer, compared to the authorities charges at the bottom:
Format: Retailer; EA Levy TOU sites: EA Levy non TOU sites (levy in c/kWh, excl GST and PPD)
Meridian; 0.116; 0.188
Mercury; 0.116; Inclusive
Trust Power; 0.112; 0.112
Genesis; 0.155; Inclusive
Contact; 0.155; 0.167
Nova; 0.210; Not Available
Published EA Levy: July 11 - June 12 0.110
Published EA Levy: July 12 - June 13 0.100
In summary, the Electricity Authority levies charged by retailers are not always a direct pass through that clearly reflects charges being recovered from the Authority. Whether for business or residential purposes I think our customers should be aware of the anomaly. Do take it into account in your analysis of costs and also consider it when agreeing a contract as the catch all clause "we will pass through any tax or levy" is not a safe one in this case.
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This newsletter was provided by:
Smart Power
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