Catch up
Capital
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New Zealand’s competition watchdog approved the NZ$1.9 billion acquisition by one of the country’s “big four” gentailers Contact Energy (NZE: CEN) of fifth-largest Manawa Energy (NZE: MNW). Smaller retailers expect to be squeezed further with the combination to control 24% of electricity generation, particularly on shaped hedges that offer price protection.
‘‘By bringing in and diversifying their generation portfolio with Manawa, they have a greater ability or share of that market … It’s really about the consolidation of what is already a very concentrated market, where we have this refusal to supply these shaped hedges.’’ — Electric Kiwi chief executive Huia Burt told ODT
Contact Chair Rob McDonald said the Commerce Commission decision was a significant milestone. “The combination of Contact and Manawa is an important step for the New Zealand energy transition, providing greater ability to invest in future generation capacity, enhancing market security and ultimately contributing to reducing wholesale prices long-term,” he said. Contact is targeting implementation of the deal in July 2025.
AEMO Services opened a competitive tender for NSW Long Duration Storage Long-Term Energy Service Agreements (LDS LTESAs). The financial product features a series of 1-year options to enter a cash settled swap for a contract term of up to 40 years. A fleet of shorter-duration (two to four-hour) batteries may be handy for nearer-term reliability - and meeting 2030 targets - but storage of at least eight hours duration will be needed as coal-fired power stations exit the grid. The hydro-friendly Tender Round 6 is seeking an indicative tender size of at least 1GW (at least 8 GWh) of LDS across NSW that must be operational by 2034.
 Projects
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Meanwhile, WA will build Australia's biggest vanadium flow battery in Kalgoorlie-Boulder on the edge of the state's power grid.
“The big question: can the promise of 2029 be delivered on? Yes!” — Australian Vanadium CEO Graham Arvidson
Policy
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Superpower Institute Chair Rod Sims urged the Albanese government to campaign on a carbon price at the 2028 election.
Writing in The Australian, Sims also called for more action on gas.
"Support for renewables is often characterised as reliance on solar and wind only. This is not so. We have pumped hydro and ever improving batteries, and gas is ideal for ensuring reliability with its low capital cost and high operating cost. Gas has played a key role in fossil fuel electricity generation; so it will in the net zero world, albeit with less volume required.
"The Coalition went to the election with a policy on gas reservation. The details were not available, but the key point is that Australia has enough gas, we just need to determine how to make it work for Australia. Australia has by far the highest domestic gas prices of any gas exporting country; this must change, and the government has the ability to make this happen." — Rod Sims, Chair, The Superpower Institute
Solar and battery installer 1KOMMA5° is already applying a discount in the expectation incentive costs can be claimed back once the “really attractive” battery subsidy program goes live from July 1 as promised. Smart Energy Council chief John Grimes expects strong demand from the millions of households with rooftop solar already installed. (AAP)
Carbon Market Institute Chair Dr Kerry Schott, speaking at a two-day forum, captured the “irritation” of the sector on lengthy delays that are restricting investment. Delegates want a solid 2035 emission reduction target announced sooner rather than later and long-delayed methods finalised. Another theme was the need for a less binary policy discussion.
“It’s not industrial decarbonisation OR offset credits, the latter must complement not substitute the former.
It’s not emission reduction OR carbon removal, it must be both as we head to more of the latter as we approach net zero.
It’s not academic analysis OR industry experience, we must integrate both with greater transparency from industry as well as a recognition the former will lag the latter.” — CMI CEO John Connor
A group of 15 Democratic states sued the Trump administration over what they said was his illegal declaration of an energy emergency. They said federal agencies were rushing permits for fossil fuel projects under false pretences. (New York Times)
Regulation
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Still pending is a request to AEMC seeking transparency for small customers in metering changes so they don’t get post-installation surprises about tariff changes. Although some changes are due to take effect from July 1, they lack an express consumer protection provision against contracting out. Nor should customers be shifted to time-of-use contracts without their prior knowledge or consent, according to the request for changes to the National Energy Retail Rules.
Elsewhere, Texas introduced a striking new piece of legislation, Senate Bill 715, which has shaken investor confidence across the energy sector, not just within renewables. The bill demands renewable power plants retroactively guarantee power availability by pairing their intermittent wind and solar farms with dispatchable backup power, typically gas or large-scale battery storage. While at first glance, this might seem like a targeted regulatory adjustment to ensure reliability, it is, in reality, an aggressive intervention into existing contractual arrangements. (CleanTechnica)
Technology
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In Switzerland, Sun-Ways received approval to install 48 380-watt solar panels along part of the national rail. During the planned three-year pilot phase, Sun-Ways hopes to generate close to 16,000kWh annually from the linear array, injecting the electric current into the local network. (Energy Tech)
Canada could soon have the G7’s first small modular nuclear reactors. (CTV News)
People
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FTI Consulting appointed Scott Cockerham as a Senior Managing Director in its Corporate Finance & Restructuring segment, where he will lead the Power, Renewables & Energy Transition practice based in Houston. Senior Managing Director Chris LeWand remains global Power, Renewables & Energy Transition practice leader.
Research
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Part of an upcoming special issue, Smart Planning of Large-Scale Wind Farms for Power Systems with High Share of Wind Power, a group of researchers writing in the International Journal of Energy Research present an Integrated and Fire Spiking Neuron Model for improved wind speed forecasting.
Random
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Realising the dreams of seventeenth century alchemists, a pulse of energy turned lead into gold at the Large Hadron Collider - but only for a fraction of a second. (Nature)
