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DID YOU KNOW THAT SMART POWER OFFERS...
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High voltage network and maintenance planning
Customers that own their own high voltage electricity networks have obligations under the current market rules. Owners need to manage these assets in a compliant manner and meet service levels and testing standards.
Smart Power offers high voltage network management services to ensure that all assets are fully operational and monitor the network's condition through non evasive testing. Our service plans and schedules the multitude of tests, including a routine maintenance cycle, over a five year period.
The test results are monitored to show trends that can quickly identify any deterioration in equipment that may effect reliability, and make appropriate plans to rectify the problems before they become a major issue.
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EVER WONDERED ABOUT....
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DALI?
DALI is an acronym for "Digital addressable lighting interface". It is an international standard (IEC62386 for those who like detail) for lighting communication. Simply put, it is a digital two-way communication system for lighting that is controlled using appropriate software, or your Building Management System (BMS). A DALI system uses open protocol to ensure that different vendors can all operate on the same system.
All lights in a DALI system require a ballast with a unique "address". A DALI ballast is an intelligent device that can be configured to remember its power-on level, maximum level, minimum level, system failure level, fade rate and fade time. Each ballast is then connected to the DALI control system that communicates two-way with each individual ballast, via the use of that unique address.
Among other things, the software in a DALI lighting system enables you to control each light independently; receive specific information about lamp failure; create, change and manage 'groups' of lights without any changes required to the hardware; create pre-set lighting scenarios such as "candle-lit dinner for two" that you can apply at any time; and take advantage of any daylight in the building with automatic dimming functionality.
To work effectively, a DALI system needs to be maintained at all times. The initial set-up requires creating a database that links the ballast address with a physical location and the control device(s) that operate them. Like any database, it needs to be kept up-to-date to ensure that the information it contains is correct and material.
The primary advantage of a DALI system is the ability to control each light individually. Efficiency gains are realised through installing extra's into the DALI system, such as daylight and occupancy sensors, however as with any tool - it will only ever be as efficient as the user controlling it!
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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 Australia, New Zealand and around the world.
In "Company Voice" this month, New Zealand based director Glenn Johnston provides his opinion on the partial privatisation of NZ's Energy SOE's.
As always your feedback is most welcome. |
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AUSTRALIAN ENERGY HEADLINES
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Manufacturers reduce costs with first round of grants
The first 13 grants from the Government's $1 billion Clean Technology Investment Programs will help Australian manufacturers reduce their energy bills. The initial grants, worth $8.1 million, will help businesses install more than $23 million of energy efficient equipment. Read More
RBA fears natural gas boom could overheat economy
Australia's natural gas boom threatens to set off a new round of interest rate hikes, pushing economic growth above the level with which the Reserve Bank is comfortable. An analysis commissioned by the industry itself finds that by 2016 LNG investment will add 2.2 per cent to GDP growth. Read More
Using the earth's heat to desalinate groundwater
A group of West Australian scientists is working on a project to turn saline groundwater into fresh, drinking quality H20 and it appears the answer to doing so is right under their feet. Geothermal energy is the energy that's derived from the heat that's stored within the earth and its uses, from heating swimming pools to producing electricity, are already well established. Read More
Australia creates largest area of marine reserves
Australia has announced the creation of the world's largest network of marine reserves covering 3.1 million square kilometers (1.2 million square miles) of ocean including the entire Coral Sea. Environment Minister Tony Burke said the government expects to pay an estimated 100 million Australian dollars ($100 million) to the fishing industry in compensation for the new restrictions on their operations that will take effect late this year. Read More
Many miss out on Melbourne Water refund
Not all people overcharged for the desalination plant by Melbourne Water will recoup their money. Melbourne Water, owned by the Victorian government, overcharged customers a total of $230 million for the Wonthaggi plant, which is not expected to be operational until at least February next year. Read More
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NEW ZEALAND ENERGY HEADLINES
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New Zealand Energy Data File 2012 released
New Zealand's renewable share of total primary energy supply increased to 39 per cent in 2011, the highest on record, the Ministry of Economic Development reported recently. New Zealand ranks second in the OECD for the share of renewables towards total primary energy supply. Read More
Mighty River Power granted consent for new wind farm
State-owned Mighty River Power has been granted resource consents for a proposed 53 turbine wind farm on the Puketoi Range, but weak electricity demand means the site is unlikely to be developed for some time. Read More
Solar power needs stronger Government support
With the cost of solar panels dropping and the cost of electricity rising, the Government needs to start seriously supporting the installation of home solar power systems, says the head of a sustainable energy body. Read More
Bid to stop oil giant's exploration thrown out
A High Court bid by Greenpeace and a Maori tribe to quash a permit granted to Brazilian oil giant Petrobras for exploration off the East Coast has been thrown out. The applicants claimed the Government failed to meet environmental and consultation obligations under the Crown Minerals Act, Treaty of Waitangi obligations and international law. Read More
Opposition: Power Prices will rise
Opposition parties warned power prices would rise uncontrollably under the National Government's partial privatisation of power companies. Read More
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INTERNATIONAL ENERGY HEADLINES
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Flatulent cows' gas emissions measured by scientists
Government scientists have been commissioned to measure exactly how much methane a cow releases in the hope of making Britain's livestock less flatulent. Agriculture is thought to contribute about eight per cent of all British greenhouse gas emissions, largely thanks to the prolific releases by cattle and other farm animals. Read More
Dreaming Up Whole New Carbon Markets
Normally, when supporters of renewable energy talk about carbon markets, they're referring to a system of traded credits that industries buy to compensate for their emissions of greenhouse gases. But at the "Renewable Energy Finance Forum-Wall Street", the talk was of developing a different kind of carbon market where the gas would be bought and sold like a commodity to encourage carbon capture. Read More
Dumped: Rio's odious garbage mountain reborn as new energy source One of the world's largest open-air landfills, a vast, seaside mountain of trash where thousands of people have made a living sorting through the debris by hand, closed recently after 34 years in putrid service. Long a symbol of ill-conceived urban planning and environmental negligence, Rio de Janeiro's Jardim Gramacho dump is being transformed into a vast biogas facility that will harness the greenhouse gases generated by the rotting rubbish and turn them into fuel capable of heating homes and powering cars. Read More Make or break time for electric car maker Tesla It's a make or break moment for electric-car maker Tesla Motors. Tesla has lost nearly $US1 billion selling high-end electric sports cars to the likes of George Clooney. Now it's going to attempt to sell them to the rest of us and try to make money doing so. Read More Solar energy boom on horizon for Japan Japan is poised to overtake Germany and Italy to become the world's second-biggest market for solar power as incentives starting July 1 drive sales for equipment makers from Yingli Green Energy Holdings to Kyocera. Industry Minister Yukio Edano may set a premium price for solar electricity that's about triple what industrial users now pay for conventional power, a ministry official said. Read More |
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THE COMPANY VOICE
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Glenn Johnston is responsible for technical work streams within Smart Power including energy auditing, risk analysis and energy tenders.
Glenn started in the electricity industry in 1993 with the Electricity Corporation of New Zealand (ECNZ) where he was involved in assisting customers to identify and implement energy saving initiatives. After the break up of ECNZ into smaller entities, Glenn went to Genesis Energy as an account manager working with customers to supply their energy needs. Glenn joined Smart Power in 2003 from Transpower where he gained a strong knowledge of electricity supply and network pricing.
New Zealand has recently passed law that enables the government to partially privatise (Up to 49%) five State Owned Enterprises that operate within the Energy Sector. With the privatisation of electricity assets again raising its head in NSW, it is interesting to note what changes other countries are going through.
New Zealand Director Glenn Johnston provides his thoughts on the upcoming changes:
Please note, these musings are mine and not representative of Smart Power or the other Directors:
The next iteration of changes to the NZ electricity system is upon us with the partial privatisation of Mercury, Genesis, Meridian, Solid Energy and Air New Zealand.
This is an energy piece so I won't say much about Air NZ, except go for it.
Solid Energy is simply the other way. This is not a good idea, why sell our natural resources when the crown can own and control them now. Private enterprise will want to extract and sell as much as possible, as quickly as possible. Coal can have a long future (500 years+) in the New Zealand energy market if used wisely.
There's been a lot of misinformation spoken on the electricity asset sales, not to mention the hypocrisy but that's just politics. Polls show that most New Zealanders are against it and considering it overall, I probably am too. But I'm not strongly against it and would probably be putting my hand up to buy shares if I wasn't an independent energy consultant. I'm guessing that this seems to be the head space of most New Zealanders. The electricity generation and retail is already partially privatised in New Zealand and this will just move it further along the scale. I wonder if most opponents just see it as the first step to selling it all and that's the key reason for the opposition. Being a trusting person, I think National don't actually have this planned but the reality is the next government, or the government after that, may think it is a good idea. Then it will certainly be easier to sell the other 51% after having completed this partial privatisation.
Government has an uneasy time with the electricity industry. They own a very large portion of the generation and retail and thus get blamed when prices continue to go up. They get blamed when it's doesn't rain in the South Island and we have to conserve electricity. They run the overseers of the industry, the Electricity Authority and Commerce Commission. They actively fund campaigns for consumers to shop around, thus attacking the profits of their own companies. The government is also a significant consumer of electricity and has now set up an organisation within MED to buy it as cheaply as possible, which could again affect the profits of its own companies.
In my opinion this is probably driving the decision to sell. The less they own, the less blame when things go wrong and less the conflicts internally.
The big question though is how will this affect electricity pricing? That's easy, private shareholders will want better returns and one way to do this is higher prices. On the flip side, these new shareholders should give more focus internally on each business and reduce poor or politically-driven decision making. The return for the taxpayers remaining 51% shareholding should thus improve.
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