Coal news and updates

Meridian Energy believes it is close to signing deals that will see it supply cheap electricity to commercial customers in the South Island to replace coal boilers.

 

Such deals could make it less likely that cheap power will be available to power the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter, should it want to continue operations beyond 2024.

 

Meridian chief executive Neal Barclay told Parliament’s Transport and Infrastructure select committee that it expected to have about 5000 gigawatt-hours a year of renewable electricity to sell after then.

 

It had been offering commercial users 10-year deals to buy that power at electricity prices that were similar to those it used to offer the smelter before it offered the smelter a further “unsustainable” discount last year, he said.

 

It was also offering a contribution towards their conversion costs, he said.

 

Source : https://www.stuff.co.nz/business