DIY electricity makes sense for Nelson City Council
As electricity costs continue to rise, the idea of generating your own starts to become increasingly appealing.
Add in growing concerns about climate change, and a commitment to cutting CO2 emissions, and for local bodies like the Nelson City Council, DIY power generation makes both economic and environmental sense.
Now, thanks to a $100,000 interest-free loan from EECA’s Crown Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme, the Council is about to start work on a mini-hydroelectric generation scheme attached to its water treatment plant.
Harnessing energy
The mini-hydro scheme will harness what is currently wasted energy created by the flow of water from the Roding River, into the Tantragee Saddle Water Treatment Plant. A turbine at the treatment plant will capture that energy just before the water enters the plant. The electricity produced will be used to help run the treatment station.
The mini-hydro scheme is expected to cut the energy bill at the treatment station by about $15,000 a year, and the payback time for the scheme is about six years.
The scheme is being designed by Wellington consultant Simon Cartwright of Better Technical Options Ltd. He says mini-hydro schemes make sense for those local bodies which have access to excess energy from water treatment and sewerage schemes.
“At present we are working on a number of mini-hydrogeneration projects with various local authorities, on both water and wastewater applications – there is definitely potential out there, it’s just a matter of identifying it.”
EECA assistance
According to EECA’s Dan Coffey, the Nelson City Council scheme is a good example of how EECA’s Crown Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme can help local bodies undertake innovative energy-
saving projects.
He says mini-hydro schemes such as this one are becoming increasingly viable as power prices continue to rise.
“They’re a good way for local bodies to offset increasing power prices, as well as reduce their CO2 emissions and become more environmentally sustainable.”
Crown Energy Efficiency Loans are available to government departments and other publicly funded bodies for energy efficient investments. The loans are interest-free, but they do have procurement fees. These give them an effective finance rate of between 3-6 per cent per annum, depending on the size of the loan.
