Energy Research Briefings
Findings from recent research carried out by Energy Centre staff and associates in short, accessible summaries.
Where and how to decarbonise in New Zealand: Lessons for firms, investors and policymakers from recent emissions drops
Forty percent of New Zealand's (NZ) greenhouse emissions come from producing and consuming energy.
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Energy Research Briefing No. 14. Size: 277.8 kB.
Document Description: Where and how to decarbonise in New Zealand: Lessons for firms, investors and policymakers from recent emissions drops
Installing rooftop solar at home as a way to boost EV uptake: A case study of Auckland
Kiwis are likelier to buy electric vehicles (EVs) if they first instal rooftop solar at home.
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Energy Research Briefing No. 13. Size: 265.1 kB.
Document Description: Installing rooftop solar at home as a way to boost EV uptake: A case study of Auckland
Driving into the future on electric roads: Case study of an Auckland motorway
Imagine if your electric vehicle's (EV's) battery topped itself up from charging pads under the road as you drove.
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Energy Research Briefing No. 12. Size: 59.5 kB.
Document Description: Driving into the future on electric roads: Case study of an Auckland motorway
Ripple effects on electric vehicle uptake in New Zealand
What would entice you to buy either a purely battery electric vehicle (BEV) or plug-in hybrid (PHEV)?
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Energy Research Briefing No. 11. Size: 131.3 kB.
Document Description: Ripple effects on electric vehicle uptake in New Zealand
How will climate change impact the cost of decarbonising New Zealand's hydro-led power system?
Climate change doubly complicates planning and investing in renewable energy.
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Energy Research Briefing No.10. Size: 58.4 kB.
Document Description: How will climate change impact on the cost of decarbonising New Zealand's hydro-led power station?
How do COVID-19 containment measures reshape electricity demand? New Zealand's experience
Drastic COVID-19 containment measures worldwide offer energy policymakers and investors an unprecedented experiment in how demand changes under outside constraints.
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Energy Research Briefing No.9. Size: 78.9 kB.
Document Description: How do COVID-19 containment measures reshape electricity demand? New Zealand's experience
How hydro and wind co-affect New Zealand's electricity prices: A seasonal spatial analysis
New Zealand’s (NZ’s) target of 100% renewable electricity generation by 2035 may require quadrupling wind’s contribution from its current 5%.
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Energy Research Briefing No.8. Size: 306.0 kB.
Document Description: How hydro and wind co-affect New Zealand’s electricity prices: A seasonal spatial analysis
Mixes of electric vehicle types to minimise energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in Australia and New Zealand
Drivers and policymakers, take note! The share of electric vehicles in New Zealand's and Australia's light duty vehicle fleets is due to rocket from 0.3% and an even more meagre 0.05% respectively to 95% and (by passenger vehicle sales) 65% by 2050.
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Energy Research Briefing No.7. Size: 124.0 kB.
Document Description: Mixes of electric vehicle types to minimise energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in Australia and New Zealand
Market power in the New Zealand electricity wholesale market 2010-2016
Recent research suggests that across the seven years 2010-2016 NZ electricity generators collected altogether $5.4 billion more profit than they would have settled for - making it pure gravy, or economic "rent" - through anti-competitive market power.
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Energy Research Briefing No.6. Size: 91.7 kB.
Document Description: Market power in the New Zealand electricity wholesale market 2010-2016
Breaking down New Zealand's energy consumption between 2006/2007 and 2012/2013
To achieve the goal in NZ's Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Act 2019 of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the most tractable lever is energy.
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Energy Research Briefing No.5. Size: 161.3 kB.
Document Description: Breaking down New Zealand's energy consumption between 2006/2007 and 2012/2013
Impacts of COVID-19 response on mobility and transport mode choices: An early New Zealand study
New Zealand famously went "early and hard" in eliminating community transmission of COVID-19.
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Energy Research Briefing No.4. Size: 160.8 kB.
Document Description: Impacts of COVID-19 response on mobility and transport mode choices: An early New Zealand study
Real-time pricing and market power in electricity: New modelling shows extra gains
Among the many quirks of electricity markets is that demand does not vary much with price.
What motivates commuters to choose public transport? Social network effects as a key factor
Urban planners and policymakers everywhere need to know what factors motivate transport choices, especially to coax commuters out of cars and into public transit.
World-first modelling can inform wind farm investment choices in New Zealand
To lift renewables' shares in electricity from some 80% to the target of 90% by 2025, New Zealand will need to exploit its natural advantage of wind, currently producing just 5%.