Hon Gerry Brownlee

Energy savings campaign launched

nospam@example.com (admin) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:07:00 +1200

A high profile television campaign has been launched to help New Zealanders increase the energy efficiency of their homes and businesses, Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee announced today.

The new prime time campaign, called The Energy Spot, will screen three nights a week (Sunday, Monday and Tuesday) at 6.50pm, on four television channels, as well as 13 other times during the week.

The Energy Spot will cover a range of topics of interest to households and businesses, from insulating houses to efficient driving choices, renewable energy options, building design, and more.

"New Zealand households spend about $3.5 billion on energy each year. For our businesses, the figure is close to $13.5 billion a year. There are massive savings to be made from using our energy more efficiently," said Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee.

Research by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) shows many New Zealanders are keen to reduce their energy usage but are unsure how to do so.

"This new campaign will give large numbers of people clear, practical information to help them make the most of the energy they use both at home and at work," Mr Brownlee said.

"As well as saving money, using our energy more wisely improves the health and comfort of our homes, makes for more competitive businesses, protects our environment and reduces our carbon emissions," he said.

"We want these spots to demonstrate simple no-cost or low-cost actions New Zealanders can take right now to save energy, which benefit both them and the country."

"For example, if just one out of ten households who watch the show avoid leaving appliances on standby, the country would save over $10 million or enough electricity to run over 5,000 homes," said Mr Brownlee.

"Thanks to the success of the insulation campaign we're already running, more New Zealanders are conscious of the benefits they can get from energy efficiency, both in terms of their health and comfort, and also cutting energy wastage.

"This campaign will build on that success and encourage more New Zealanders to take advantage of the savings that are available to them right now," he said.

The Energy Spot was launched by Mr Brownlee in the Beehive today. The spots start screening on October 4^th and the campaign is being delivered by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).

Facts and figures:

The Energy Spot campaign is costing $4 million dollars to run over the next 12 months. Further details of how to make energy savings will be available on the EECA website.

EECA estimates that each household can easily save 10% on their electricity bills by taking a few simple steps. That works out to savings of about $200 per household, or $320 million in savings each year across the whole country.

Reducing our electricity generation by 10% equates to a reduction of 760,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year. Assuming a future carbon charge of $25 a tonne, this is worth $19 million to the economy.

An average household spends about $2,200 a year on transport fuel. By using a few simple driving and maintenance tips, people can reduce this by about 20%.

Reducing our consumption of transport fuels by just 10% equates to a reduction of almost 1.5 million tonnes greenhouse gas emissions per year, worth $37 million to the economy.

Most businesses can save between 10 and 20% of their energy costs. Across all businesses, that adds up to between $1.35 and $2.7 billion every year that could be going to the bottom line.

Launch of Energy Spot Campaign

nospam@example.com (admin) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:58:00 +1200

It gives me great pleasure to be here today to launch The Energy Spot campaign.

The Energy Spot is a name I expect we will become very familiar with in the next year.

It is a new and large scale campaign to help change the way we use energy in our homes and businesses.

It is mainly a prime time television campaign which will set out for New Zealanders the practical choices and options they have to use their energy wisely.

We are all familiar with the Food in the Minute campaign we see on our televisions, well this will be something similar.

A series of 60 second "Energy Spots" played across all the main television channels on what options we all have to save power and money.

This idea is something I have personally pushed for because I believe it makes sense.

With just a little bit of practical advice we can make significant power savings at home and at work, and therefore make better use of our nation's energy resources.

New Zealand households spend about $3.5 billion on energy each year, our businesses spend about $13 billion a year.

It's likely we are wasting a good margin of that energy - energy we could be saving.

And we know from EECA's research that not only are people interested in ways to manage their energy use - but many also feel they lack the knowledge on how to go about it.

64% of respondents to EECA's survey said a barrier to using energy wisely was difficulty getting the information they need.

People want information that is easy to access and easy to understand - it's why prime time television is an ideal medium.

I have championed this project because I believe many New Zealanders are hungry for good authoritative information

How will Energy Spot work?

It's a 60 second spot that's going to screen three nights a week - Sunday Monday and Tuesday.

It will screen at 6.50pm on four channels- TV One, TV2, TV3 and Maori TV.

In addition, The Energy Spot will screen 13 other times during the week, at the discretion of the broadcasters.

By screening on four major channels at the same time, plus these other screenings, it will capture 96% of adults over the course of the year.

The Energy Spot will cover a range of topics.

One week it might talk about efficient ways to heat your house, another week might be about choosing appliances that will save you money in the long term.

Many of the topics will be about household energy usage but it will also cover energy use in business, and in transport. It will also explore some of the larger issues of where our energy comes from and how we can best use it.

A key part of the Energy Spot will be demonstrating a simple low-cost or no-cost tip that viewers can do straight away.

We want to emphasise that good energy management does not have to mean big capital investments - it can just be about changing habits in a way that doesn't impact on our lifestyle but can make a big difference to our energy bills.

It's never cheap to do television. This campaign is going to cost $4 million over the coming year. But we are getting value for money from it.

As well as savings for households and businesses, there is a saving to the country as a whole.

EECA estimates that most households can easily save 10% on their electricity bills by taking a few simple steps. That works out to savings of about $200 per household, or about $320 million in savings each year across the whole country.

Even if just one in every ten households who watch the spot avoid leaving appliances on standby, the country would save over $10 million or enough electricity to run over 5,000 homes a year.

And by reducing our energy consumption, we reduce our greenhouse gas emissions too.

As an example, a 10% decrease in electricity use equates to a reduction of 760,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year. Assuming a future carbon charge of $25 a tonne, this is worth $19 million to the economy.

Using our energy more efficiently also provides other benefits -benefits like improvements to the health and comfort of our homes, and developing more profitable businesses

In a moment we will play a few episodes of The Energy Spot as an example of what we will see.

As well as providing advice, The Energy Spot will also say where more detailed information can be found, which will be on EECA's ENERGYWISE website.

A very important factor in delivering a credible, engaging programme is the presenter, and I am very happy to say that the presenter for The Energy Spot is here today and will shortly come up and introduce himself.

Jared Turner is an Auckland-based actor who has appeared in several films and who has all the right attributes to deliver energy efficiency messages to New Zealanders.

And Jared is, of course, just one member of the large team that is making The Energy Spot happen.

I would like to thank EECA and their associated companies for their hard work in making this happen.

The Energy Spot will start on Sunday the 4th of October.

It will help us use our power more efficiently at home and at work and it will help us become a nation that makes the most of our energy resources.

It will provide New Zealanders with the advice they are seeking and practical low cost solutions to help them be more energy efficient.

And for a relatively small upfront cost we have the potential to save the home, the workplace, and the economy a great deal of money.

I hope you enjoy watching the Energy Spot now, and also for the many months ahead.

So now it is my great pleasure to show you a sneak preview of the Energy Spot.

Thank you.

Renewable power generation increases

nospam@example.com (admin) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:51:00 +1200

The Minister of Energy and Resources says a high level of renewable electricity generation has been recorded in the latest New Zealand Energy Quarterly release this afternoon.

The data collected by the Ministry of Economic Development shows that in the June quarter 70 percent of electricity came from renewable sources.

This was the third consecutive quarter where generation from renewable sources was 70 percent or more. Renewable generation is on track to be over 70 percent for the calendar year for the first time since 2004.

The Minister for Energy and Resources, Gerry Brownlee, says favourable hydro-lake flows this year meant higher use of hydro generation compared with the same time last year.

"This also meant less need to use thermal power stations, in fact generation from fossil fuels was collectively down by 32% compared with the June quarter last year," said Mr Brownlee.

Total emissions from greenhouse gases has increased over the June quarter in line with the normal seasonal variation from higher winter demand being largely met from fossil fuels, particularly coal. However, total greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation this quarter were 23% lower.

Other key findings:

Diesel consumption was down seven percent. The new fuel consumption statistics for the June quarter showed the global recession dented local demand for liquid fuels. Significant reductions in demand across all fuels and economic sectors occurred this quarter.

And this quarter the total amount of gas flaring was higher than in the preceding two quarters due to the arrival of the Maari field where all gas is flared.

Details about the data can be found on the MED website.

www.med.govt.nz/energy/nzeq.

8000 homes insulated in 8 weeks

nospam@example.com (admin) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:33:00 +1200

Latest figures show over 8000 New Zealand homes have been retrofitted in the first eight weeks of the government's insulation scheme.

Energy and Resources Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says he's delighted with the latest data which shows both the popularity of the government scheme and the delivery being performed by EECA.

"While the first month's operation indicated this scheme is popular, the second month shows a significant step-up in the number of homes being retrofitted.

"In the month of August 4,889 homes had insulation and/or heaters installed, which is a solid increase on the 3,282 homes in July. It means in total 8,171 homes have been retrofitted in the first two months" said Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee.

"The government committed spending $323 million over four years to insulate 180 thousand homes, so I have to say we won't have any difficulty achieving that target."

"Having retrofitted over 8 thousand homes in just eight weeks is impressive, bearing in mind we are at the early stages and EECA is still gearing-up by accrediting more providers," said Mr Brownlee.

"Its also pleasing to see who is taking up the scheme, the figures show that 57% of those who had their houses retrofitted in August were low income earners, the other 47% were general income homes."

"What we are seeing here is a clear trend of low to middle income New Zealanders embracing the scheme with third party funding working well and a strong appetite for councils, banks and power companies to be funders as well."

"I have seen the results of the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development online survey on the scheme and obviously it confirms what we already know, this scheme is very popular."

"However I think the conclusion that high income earners are more likely to apply for the scheme than middle income earners can't be sustained. I gather only a few high income earners participated in the online survey. It also runs against what is actually happening out there in the two months of operation," said Mr Brownlee.

$4 million West Coast Timber Settlement

nospam@example.com (admin) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 12:50:00 +1200

The government is making a $4 million dollar payment to four West Coast timber mills to settle a long running grievance with the Timberlands West Coast SOE.

Economic Development Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says an ex gratia payment is being made to address the failure of Timberlands to supply its forecast of timber harvest from 2000 when indigenous logging stopped

"The government commissioned an independent assessment by KordaMentha to assess the actions of Timberland. KordaMentha concluded Timberlands may have not acted fairly to the West Coast timber industry over log projections," said Mr Brownlee.

"A good faith ex gratia payment has been offered to the mills which made significant investment decisions to process pruned logs based on over-estimated projections," he said.

"The affected mills agreed between themselves how they would split the total payment. This is a good outcome that I am pleased resolves a long-standing grievance," said Mr Brownlee.

The mills are Westco Lagan Ltd and Westimber Ltd, (which are both still operating), W.E. Whiley and Co Ltd (placed in receivership in 2008) and Inangahua Sawmilling Ltd, which closed in 2008.

Mr Brownlee said that while the government had no legal obligation to compensate the mills it was prepared to make the ex gratia payment as a full and final settlement over any future claims the mills might make.

"I hope this closes the final chapter on this saga," said Mr Brownlee.

National tourism energy efficiency programme launched

nospam@example.com (admin) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:36:47 +1200

Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee has welcomed the launch of a national programme to improve the energy performance of New Zealand’s tourism businesses.

“The results from the pilot programme, a joint project between the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) and the Tourism Industry Association (TIA), showed this was a worthwhile investment.

If all of the 16,000 tourism businesses in New Zealand made similar savings to businesses in the pilot programme, that’s nearly $500 million dollars a year that could be invested elsewhere,” said Mr Brownlee.

The Tourism Energy Efficiency Programme was launched by the Associate Minister of Tourism, Jonathan Coleman, in Auckland today.

It will improve the competitiveness and environmental credentials of New Zealand tourism businesses through better energy management.

“This programme provides practical assistance for tourism businesses in the accommodation and transport sectors to use energy management to reduce costs, reduce environmental impacts, retain jobs and keep thriving,” said Mr Brownlee.

“Tourism is a $20 billion industry that contributes close to 10% of New Zealand’s GDP and employs one in ten New Zealanders, Mr Brownlee said. “It is an industry that is vital for our economy.”

“It is also an industry that relies on New Zealand’s unique natural environment as the main tourism product,” he said.

Participating businesses receive a detailed energy audit, identifying potential dollar and energy savings, at approximately half the normal price. The businesses also receive free mentoring and assistance in implementing energy saving opportunities.

The programme was first developed as a regional pilot in 2008. Twelve tourism businesses identified potential energy savings worth $375,000 a year, and annual savings of over 700 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to taking 170 cars off the road.

Results from the programme are then shared with other tourism businesses to encourage widespread replication.

The government, through EECA, contributed $160,000 to the pilot project. An additional $287,000 has been allocated to the next phase of the project which will audit a further 14 tourism operations.

Home insulation retrofits top 7000 in eight weeks

nospam@example.com (admin) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 11:15:00 +1200

The Government’s home insulation scheme has resulted in more than 7000 New Zealand homes being insulated or fitted with clean heat in the eight weeks since the scheme started.

Prime Minister John Key, Energy & Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee and Green Party co-leader Russel Norman today visited the Mangere home of Gaznafar and Shabina Buksh, and their three children, to mark the two month milestone of the Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart scheme.

The Buksh family are having ceiling and underfloor insulation put in, as well as a cylinder wrap and moisture barrier, and heat pump. The installation is being done by Eco Insulation, a North Island company that has employed 50 new staff to deal with increased demand since the scheme’s launch on 1 July.

As well as the subsidy from the scheme, the family are getting funding under the ASB Community Trust’s Snug Homes programme.

“It’s very pleasing to see so many New Zealand families taking up the home insulation scheme. It’s tracking well ahead of target, which is good news,” says Mr Key.

“Warmer, drier homes means energy savings, lower power bills and better health outcomes. The sooner the insulation goes in, the sooner those benefits start mounting up for people.

“It is pleasing that this project is also creating jobs around the country. Most providers registered under the scheme have already hired new staff to cope with the demand, while insulation manufacturers have increased production, creating more employment.”

Mr Brownlee says a new network of providers will be signed up to install the insulation from 1 October, and an announcement will be made soon on which companies have been selected as long-term providers under Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart.

“This will mean even more suppliers on the ground to deliver the scheme, which will mean more jobs, as well as more homes insulated. Some homeowners have had to wait for a provider.

“I am asking people to be patient while the scheme is still gearing up, but the numbers show that even before we’ve reached full capacity many thousands of families are already benefiting.

“Bringing in more companies will mean people can get their homes attended to faster, and start reaping the benefits earlier.”

Background

The Government announced funding of $323 million in the May Budget for a programme to fund insulation and clean heat in New Zealand homes.

Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart was launched on 1 July. The programme, run by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, will insulate 180,000 homes over four years.

Between 1 July and 1 August 2009, 3282 homes were insulated and/ or fitted with clean heat under the scheme. EECA’s tracking shows that more than 4000 homes have been retrofitted during August. Exact totals, including a regional break-down, will be released mid-September.

For more information see www.energywise.govt.nz

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Opening Address to Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy 2009

nospam@example.com (admin) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 10:36:00 +1200

Introduction

Good morning. May I begin by saying how delighted I am to be part of your annual conference and, in particular, to be invited to present this opening address.

I would first like to welcome you all, especially the international delegates and conference speakers.

It’s a pleasure to be with you and I hope that while you are here in Queenstown you will have an opportunity to enjoy the many attractions that this beautiful part of New Zealand has to offer.

Let me begin by talking briefly about the government’s approach to our natural resources, then make some comment on your industry’s achievements over the past year.

Then I want to talk about the plans the government has to enable New Zealand’s minerals industry to grow over the coming years.

Government’s approach to natural resources

The National-led Government is absolutely determined to raise our living standards.

That is going to require a big improvement to our economic growth and productivity rates.

We see our natural resources as playing a big role in contributing to those goals.

There is no doubt that New Zealand is a mineral rich country.

A recent report by Richard Barker estimated our metallic mineral potential to have a gross in-ground value in excess of $140 billion, with lignite alone at least an additional $100 billion.

Australia is often referred to as the “lucky country” because of its natural resources endowment.

The Ministers in the previous Government often used to explain away the gap in per-capita income between Australia and New Zealand as being almost entirely due to their mineral abundance.

But New Zealanders need to know that this country is also well endowed with natural resources.

A report circulated by the World Bank some years ago ranked New Zealand second in the world in terms of natural wealth per capita.

We were behind only Saudi Arabia, but well ahead of Australia.

So I am firmly of the belief that our natural resources have the potential to make a significant contribution to our prosperity and our economic development.

As a nation we have neglected the contribution that the resources sector could make to our growth rate, levels of employment, and quality of life.

Our Government wants to change that.

We are going to be far more pragmatic and supportive than the previous administration towards exploration and mining activity.

Of course we must be cognisant of our responsibility to the environment. But mining and the environment can co-exist together. I will talk more about that in a few moments.

Now for some facts and figures…

I want to commend you all on an extremely successful year.

It has been a record year for mining activity with provisional data indicating that the national coal, metals and industrial minerals production for 2008 has exceeded $2 billion in value for the first time ever.

Looking briefly at 2008 in summary:

gold production topped 520,000 ounces with a record value of $626 million, largely on the back of increased production from Newmont’s and Oceana Gold’s operations and high commodity prices;

coal production was stable at 4.9M tonnes, marginally up on the previous year, but this should increase substantially over the coming years once Pike River is running at full capacity; and

the total value of all industrial minerals and building stones produced was almost $537 million.

These figures represent total production value however from the data to hand it appears that exploration activity and expenditure for 2008 was down on recent years.

Total expenditure for prospecting and exploration was $18 million, down from $38 million in the previous year.

While the current global economic recession contributed significantly to the drop in 2008 expenditure by limiting credit and tempering exploration budgets, repeating the previous year’s bumper expenditure was always an unlikely outcome.

One bright spot however is the successful near-mine exploration of major producers to raise the resource base and extend the mine life of some of our larger mining operations.

I’m referring here of course to the efforts of Oceana Gold at Macraes and Reefton, Newmont Waihi Gold at Waihi, and Solid Energy at Stockton.

Improving access to mineral resources

So what has the government got planned to lift investors’ perceptions of New Zealand as an attractive mineral investment destination and to make things easier for you to go about doing what you do best – finding mineral deposits and developing them.

Increasing our international exposure is a fundamental way to encourage new explorers and investors into New Zealand.

Crown Minerals will continue to actively promote New Zealand’s mineral potential at appropriate international conferences and to target key investors and companies.

For my part, as Minister of Energy and Resources, I am committed to unlocking New Zealand’s mineral potential for the benefit of all New Zealanders, both present and future.

At the beginning of the year the Prime Minister asked me to specify my top priorities for each of my portfolios.

I advised him that one of my top priorities in the resources area is to improve access to mineral resources.

In my short time as Minister I have become acutely aware that one of the fundamental barriers to mineral exploration and development is access to prospective land, particularly to land administered by the Department of Conservation.

Reasonable access to the mineral estate in Crown-owned land, particularly conservation land, is a key issue.

There are obviously competing objectives here but there is scope to explore how economic development objectives could be better reconciled with other land values.

There is the potential for more flexible arrangements that do not undermine conservation and environmental objectives.

The Minister of Conservation and I have agreed that officials from Crown Minerals and DOC are to work together with a clear directive to make progress on improved access to conservation land across three fronts.

These are, first, a review of Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act.

Second, improvements to DOC processes for access arrangements

And third, consultation on the reclassification of DOC administered land

I now want to briefly discuss each of these areas of work in more detail.

Starting with Schedule Four, let me put it into perspective.

I understand that DOC administered land hosts a majority of our mineral potential – an estimated 70%

About 40% of that land is listed in Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act.

That means something like 30% of our most prospective land is off limits because the Minister of Conservation is not allowed to enter into any access arrangement for any area described in Schedule 4, except for certain low impact activities.

This effectively precludes all mining activities and most exploration activities on that land.

Collectively the areas currently covered by Schedule 4 make up around 13% of New Zealand’s total land area and include the highest value conservation areas.

Some of the areas within Schedule 4 are known to host significant potential for zinc, lead, copper, nickel, tin, tungsten and other metals.

The current inclusion of these highly prospective areas in Schedule 4 has potentially denied significant opportunity for economic benefit at both a national and regional level.
I have directed Crown Minerals to undertake a strategic review to determine areas possessing significant mineral potential that, with the removal of the access prohibition provided by Schedule 4, could through responsible mining techniques contribute considerably to our prosperity.

The Crown Minerals Act sets out a process for amending Schedule 4 and as part of that process the Minister of Conservation and I will need to consult with interests likely to be substantially affected by any changes before making a decision.

While most here would agree that a review of Schedule 4 land is much needed, others in the community will have the view that, given most of the land has a high conservation value, there are very few places listed on Schedule 4 where mining activity might be appropriate.

In the case of Crown land, including that administered by DOC, the Crown has distinct interests in both the land itself and the Crown owned minerals on, or under, that land.

The relative value of these two interests depends on the specific circumstances.

Accordingly, before making a final decision to recommend that certain areas are removed from Schedule 4, the Minister of Conservation and I will be required to carefully consider the land’s mineral potential and conservation values respectively.

DOC processes for access arrangements

Turning now to the Department of Conservation access arrangements, I am well aware that, although DOC access applications are generally granted, there are some particular concerns in your industry about the process.
Common concerns include the length of time to process applications, costs in time and resources, a lack of transparency, and conditions that some applicants consider unduly onerous.

There are also indications from industry that devolved decision making and the absence of generic DOC processing procedures has resulted in inconsistencies as different conservancies take different approaches.

The Minister of Conservation and I will require DOC and Crown Minerals to progress the development of mandatory nationwide DOC standard operating procedures for processing access arrangement applications under the Crown Minerals Act.

A large part of the solution, in my view, will be better communication of what the rules are, and how they will be consistently applied across all conservancies.

The new procedures will provide for:

improved clarity regarding the information that needs to be included in an application;
improved guidance on the factors that DOC needs to consider under its legislation – in other words, to explain to applicants why certain information is needed;
specified fees and consistency in setting compensation; and
clearer timeframes for each step of the process to reduce the delays and frustrations currently experienced by both the industry and DOC.

As part of the process, officials will also seek comment and further information from the minerals industry, in particular about the guidance and application forms that industry would like to have available to assist applicants in preparing access applications.

I envisage that the new standard procedures will be operational early next year.

Consultation on the reclassification of DOC administered land

I would now like to touch on the reclassification of DOC administered land.

Reclassification currently takes place under several different provisions of five different statutes.

None of these statutes require the Minister of Energy and Resources to be consulted prior to public notification and only two - national parks and national reserves - require me to be specifically notified.

Accordingly, under current law any opportunity costs associated with a reclassification can only be assessed by Crown Minerals and raised with me after proposals to reclassify areas have already been publicly notified.

This situation is clearly unsatisfactory as reclassification of DOC land can significantly raise the conservation threshold in respect of gaining access to mineral resources.

Fortunately, with the Oteake Conservation Park proposal, at a late stage I was able to meet with the Minister of Conservation to discuss the impact that the park would have on any future development of the Hawkdun lignite deposit.

The Minister of Conservation gave due consideration to the economic development potential and consequently the park boundaries were amended to exclude this important lignite deposit which constituted just 0.3% of the proposed conservation park.

To improve the present situation, the Minister of Conservation and I have directed officials to develop options to improve processes around DOC consultation with Crown Minerals on conservation land reclassification.

Personally, I favour a system where all DOC land reclassifications are referred to Crown Minerals prior to public notification so that an early review of the land’s mineral potential can be undertaken.

I am confident that the three initiatives that I have outlined today will provide a solid platform for improving and increasing access to conservation land for responsible mineral exploration and mining activity.

Environmental Responsibility

Let me pick up on that theme of responsibility for a moment.
One thing I always stress when talking about our natural resources is that good economic outcomes must not be inconsistent with good environmental practice.

As a government we know that we need to preserve the environment for future generations.

There are a number of examples that demonstrate that good mining practice can be reconciled with respect for the environment.

Take for example the Pike River coal project on the West Coast, which was presented with a certificate from DOC for the “environmental consideration it demonstrated” in the development of the coal mine.

The mine’s environmental footprint has been kept to a minimum through good design, with little damage to the ancient trees and bush.
Driving through the spectacular Paparoa ranges, you would not know there is a coal mine only a few hundred metres away.

The building of a road through the ranges to get access to the coal mine has actually opened up that area of the country for people who otherwise wouldn’t get to experience it.

There is ample scope for environmental tourism.

The Newmont Waihi Gold in Martha Hill is another example of mining co-existing with environmental responsibility.

Rehabilitation of the Martha Mine has been a major part of mine planning.

Waste rock embankments and disturbed land are being returned to productive pasture.

When the mine closes it will be turned into a safe, stable, and self-sustaining rehabilitated state.

The pit and surrounds will become a recreational lake and park, and extensive areas of pasture will be established over waste rock stockpiles and other disturbed areas.

A final example is the work of Solid Energy at the Stockton Opencast Mine.

Solid Energy has an environmental policy of reasonably minimising the adverse local environmental affects that may be an unavoidable part of operating coal mines.

As part of this, it spent 13 months between 2006 and 2007 collecting over 6,000 “Augustus” native land snails from the Mt Augustus ridgeline of Stockton Mine.

Following collection of the snails, much of the original habitat was moved 800 metres north.

By the end of 2007, approximately 4,000 snails, and over 1,000 eggs, had been released onto this and other sites.

The three examples I’ve mentioned demonstrate that mining and good environmental practice can sit side by side.

I hope to see many more examples of these in the future as the industry expands and grows.

Conclusion

In closing, let me reiterate what I said at the start of my address.

The National-led Government is absolutely determined to raise our living standards.

The development of our abundant mineral resources will play an important role in achieving that goal.

My hope for the sector in the coming years is that we see increased prospecting and exploration in New Zealand, leading to increased production and added value to the New Zealand economy.

Thank you again for the invitation to speak to you this morning and I wish you all a productive and informative conference.

Aus & NZ Join in Mega Science Bid

nospam@example.com (admin) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 11:17:00 +1200

The Australian and New Zealand governments have agreed to join forces to bid for the A$2.5 billion (NZ$3.1 billion) international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.

The formal arrangement will be signed by New Zealand’s Economic Development Minister Gerry Brownlee and the Australian Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, at the Australia-New Zealand Leadership Forum in Sydney this morning.

The SKA is a large-scale, new-generation radio-telescope that will be by far the most powerful of its type in the world, with a discovery potential 10,000 times greater than current instruments.

The SKA will see up to four thousand antennas spread over a five thousand kilometre baseline to create a single deep space listening device.

The telescope – able to see back to the formation of the first stars – is one of the world’s most significant mega-science projects – on a par with the Large Hadron Collider in Europe. Australia and New Zealand are one of the two shortlisted sites – the other is in Southern Africa.

“The SKA project promises to be a top global science project of the 21st century, using one of the world’s most powerful computers, to explore fundamental questions in science,” Mr Brownlee said.

“Extending the configuration of the SKA to include New Zealand will significantly add to the scientific outcomes of the project and could possibly see two stations constructed in New Zealand with an array of radio telescopes,” said Mr Brownlee.

The agreement follows discussions on the SKA between Australian and New Zealand Prime Ministers over the past 12 months. It commits both countries to supporting SKA-related industry opportunities and promoting their industry capabilities internationally as part of this process.

Senator Carr said: “New Zealand’s participation will strengthen the bid to host the SKA, one of the world’s great science projects, making the bid truly international.

“New Zealand is crucial to building the global collaboration required for the SKA to reach its full potential.

“If our bid is successful, the SKA will not only significantly increase Australia’s and New Zealand’s scientific capabilities; it will result in economic benefits and spinoffs in a number of areas, including supercomputing, data transmission, renewable energy, construction and manufacturing,” Senator Carr said.

“From New Zealand’s point of view this agreement will also be a stepping stone to foster strong links and cooperation between Australian and New Zealand industry, particularly in the high-technology sectors,” Mr Brownlee said.

Final decisions on the SKA, including the host site, are not expected until 2012, with construction expected to run for six to eight years. The project currently involves a total of 19 countries.

For more information, including pictures and animations, visit www.ska.gov.au or www.skatelescope.org

Background on the SKA

If the New Zealand and Australian bid to host the SKA is successful, the SKA instrument will consist of up to 4,000 antennas and other devices spread from Western Australia to New Zealand. These radio telescopes will all operate in unison as one instrument.

The term “Square Kilometre Array” refers to the fact that when fully operational, the large number of radio telescopes will provide a combined collecting area of one million square metres (i.e. one square kilometre).

Increasing a telescope's collecting area increases its sensitivity. Thanks to higher sensitivity, weaker signals emitted by more distant or fainter celestial objects, can be received. One of the aims of the SKA is to receive signals from the early Universe – the most distant objects that can be observed. These signals are very faint and hence require a very sensitive telescope so they can be detected. This means the SKA needs to be very large.

Designing such a scope will require vigorous technological developments in computing, engineering, communications and radio frequency devices. Internationally the SKA program is being progressed by a consortium of more than 50 institutions from 19 countries, including Australia, New Zealand and countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

The cost of the SKA is currently estimated at A$2.5 billion (NZ$3.1 billion). It is expected that financing for the construction and operation of the SKA will come from international partner governments. New Zealand and Australia are members of an international group considering a range of issues relating to the SKA including governance, design, procurement and financing.SKA Science

The SKA will help to answer fundamental questions about the universe. The five key science drivers for the SKA have been identified as:

Cradle of life – this project will explore whether there are Earth-like planets around other stars, and whether they host intelligent life, thus helping to answer the eternal question of whether there is life elsewhere in the universe.
Probing the Dark Ages – this will explore the first black holes and stars, and help to answer the question of what happened after the big bang and before the first stars and galaxies formed.
The origin and evolution of cosmic magnetism - this will explore how magnetism affects the formation of stars and galaxies, and what maintains the present-day magnetic fields of galaxies, stars and planets.
Strong field tests of gravity using pulsars and black holes - this will help to test whether Einstein's theory of general relativity is the last word on gravity, for example, whether its predictions for black holes are correct, and whether the cosmos is filled with a gravitational wave background.
Galaxy evolution, cosmology, and dark matter - this will explore how galaxies are born and how they evolve, and seek a better understanding of the "dark energy" that fills the majority of the universe.

For more information on the Australia and New Zealand SKA bid visit www.ska.gov.au. Further information on SKA is available at www.skatelescope.org. Pictures and animations can be accessed on both sites.

Insulation ahead of target

nospam@example.com (admin) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:18:00 +1200

Energy and Resources Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says the government ‘s home insulation scheme is exceeding expectations in its first month of operation.

The Warm-Up New Zealand Heat Smart scheme started on July 1st.

"In the first four weeks I am pleased to report that 3,282 homes have been retrofitted," said Mr Brownlee.

"The figures collated by EECA show that 2,519 homes received insulation only, 255 received insulation and a clean heat appliance, and 508 with just a clean heating appliance."

"In terms of the types of houses being retrofitted 1,983 (60 percent) of the homes are owned by Community Service Card holders, and 1,299 are general income houses.

"The first month is a very positive indicator for the scheme. The government set a target of insulating 27,500 houses in the first year and this start-up month indicates we will easily achieve that," said Mr Brownlee.

"This has also been achieved in just the early roll out stage and before contracts have been signed to bring on even more service providers," he said.

"EECA has recently opened applications for new service providers. It received 249 applications which are currently being processed. New providers will be operational from 1 October, which will herald a serious step-up in insulation work," said Mr Brownlee.

"I am aware there has been some suggestion at this early stage that the government grants have inflated prices, although the advice I've received from EECA is that there is no indication of a widespread problem."

"And it is important to make the point the scheme is designed to make sure there is no price gouging. For example the new contracts given to providers from October 1st will ensure that only service providers offering the best prices and quality standards are selected to deliver the programme," said Mr Brownlee.

The applications also allow EECA to gauge the appropriate market prices and to only enter into contracts with service providers who will offer acceptable prices.

"It also means once contracts are signed, service providers cannot increase their pricing without negotiating with EECA. There is also an auditing process undertaken by EECA which will monitor prices being charged and take the action of cancelling service provider contracts if necessary," he said.

"Can I also thank the Greater Wellington Regional Council for its decision today to participate in the scheme from September of this year. "

The Council will provide a grant of up to $2,600 per ratepayer to fund the remaining cost of insulation and heating above the government subsidy.

Ratepayers will be able to repay this grant through their rates over a 10-year period.

"This is a welcome and useful development because it removes any up front costs for Wellington ratepayers who wish to insulate their homes," said Mr Brownlee.

Electricity review released

nospam@example.com (admin) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:19:00 +1200

The Energy and Resources Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says the Ministerial Electricity Market Review released today is an opportunity to address consumer concerns about rising power bills and security of supply.

The Ministerial Review offers a series of recommendations on improving electricity sector performance and was released today for a five week consultation period.

The review was conducted by the Technical Advisory Group appointed by the Minister and chaired by Dr Brent Layton with assistance by officials from the Ministry of Economic Development.

“I welcome the document. It is a well written report which offers practical solutions to many complex problems facing the electricity sector,” said Mr Brownlee.

“The primary goal of the review is to tackle the steep price increase to the consumer power bill over the last ten years, and to examine ways to reduce vulnerability in dry years,” said Mr Brownlee.

The review offers a range of recommendations including:

governance improvements with the Electricity Commission replaced with an Electricity Market Authority.
line companies allowed back into retailing
compensation payments to be made to consumers if they face conservation campaigns.
a reallocation of assets among SOE generator-retailers to increase competition in wholesale and retail markets.

“It is important to emphasise that this is a discussion document and my officials and I look forward to receiving feedback on the proposals - before any final decisions are made,” said Mr Brownlee.

“The government does find many of the recommendations appealing, including a system of offering compensation to consumers when asked to save power during a conservation campaign, ” he said.

“This idea really does create a big incentive for generators to manage their resource and ensure conservation campaigns are a last resort. If conservation measures are needed the consumer compensation will be an acknowledgement for inconvenience,” said Mr Brownlee.

“Ministers have discussed restructuring SOE generation assets and have ruled out option one and two as too costly and risky, and need to be convinced about the third option (ie asset swaps between Meridian and Genesis, he said.”

“Can I commend the Technical Advisory Group and MED officials for their work on this report. It is a very useful contribution and offers solutions to many difficult areas in the electricity sector I am especially pleased with the way it tackles the pricing issues which trouble many homes,” he said.

A five week period has been put aside for consultation. A copy of the report can be found at the MED website: www.med.govt.nz/electricity-market-review.

Electricity Market Review – Q&As

Why is the government reviewing the electricity market?

The government is concerned about security of supply, the affordability of electricity, and sector governance. The review is a timely and effective way to consider several reports and analyses on electricity market performance, and to develop proposals for improvements.

What is the objective of the review?

To improve performance of the electricity market and its institutions and governance arrangements in order to better achieve the government’s objectives for the electricity sector. A well-functioning electricity market should provide a reliable supply of electricity at competitive prices, that is, prices which are as low as possible consistent with ensuring reliable supply over the long term.

Who undertook the review?

An independent Electricity Technical Advisory Group (appointed on 1 April 2009) and the Ministry of Economic Development. The ETAG members are Dr Brent Layton (Chair), Miriam Dean QC, David Russell, Professor Lewis Evans, Stephen Franks and Toby Stevenson.

What is the scope of the review?

The Minister asked the review team to assess the performance of the electricity market, institutions and governance to date; identify problem areas; assess to the degree possible the costs and benefits of different reform options; and make recommendations to improve electricity market performance. A public discussion document outlining the review team’s preliminary recommendations is now being released for public consultation.

What was out of scope for the review?

The ownership and governance of State Owned Enterprises, the economic regulation (price control) of electricity lines, and wider energy sector regulation, such as gas regulation.

What did the review team consider?

The review team considered:

– The Electricity Commission’s review of the events of winter 2008.
– Available analysis of electricity market competition, including the Commerce Commission’s investigation into wholesale and retail market competition.
– The Law and Economic Consulting Group’s (LECG) report on electricity market governance for Business New Zealand.
– Current knowledge and perspectives on electricity market design and regulation.
– The market and regulatory experiences of other jurisdictions.

What are the main conclusions of the review team?

The review team has concluded that:

– The rate at which retail prices have risen, especially for residential consumers, appears excessive notwithstanding significant increases in the costs of generation. This is primarily attributed to insufficient competition in the retail market, and, to a lesser extent, in the wholesale market.
– The way in which dry years are managed can be substantially improved.
– The reliability and capacity of the transmission system can be improved.
– The governance arrangements for the sector can also be improved.

What is the timetable for electricity market reform?

The government expects to make final decisions on the reform package by the end of the year. Legislation will almost certainly be required to implement final recommendations. The government intends to conclude the review in a timely manner to ensure public, industry and investor confidence in the electricity market.

How do people have their say on the Electricity Market Review discussion document?

Submissions on the discussion document are to be received at the Ministry of Economic Development by 5.00pm Wednesday, 16 September, 2009. Further information on the public consultation process is available at www.med.govt.nz/electricity-market-review.

Address to Private Capital Markets Forum: "Venture Capital in NZ"

nospam@example.com (admin) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:39:00 +1200

Good Evening,

Thank you for the invitation to speak to the New Zealand Venture Capital Association.

I wish to start by paying tribute to efforts made by Colin McKinnon, the association's executive director

And also to Franceska Banga for her introduction and the work she undertakes on behalf of the Venture Investment Fund.

This government's overall goal is one of growing the New Zealand economy to deliver greater prosperity, security and opportunities to all New Zealanders.

We set ourselves the aspiration of raising exports from there current level of 30 per cent of GDP to 40 per cent and income parity with Australia by 2025.

To generate the higher rate of growth required we need to rapidly alter New Zealand's mix of goods and services towards those that provide higher value and higher returns - products which differentiate on the basis of quality and innovation rather than price.

As a small open economy located far from markets, we face some barriers. The global economic crisis has made our task that much harder still.

However, other small, open, advanced economies with similar characteristics, such as the Scandinavian countries, have been successful in leveraging their natural resources into higher value products.

There is no reason why New Zealand cannot enjoy the same level of success.

The National-led Government came to power with a clear agenda designed to help New Zealand businesses through the crisis but to also ensure that they are well placed to take advantage of opportunities in the long term.

As a government we want to make it clear what actions we will take to support New Zealand businesses.

This is why we are in the process of developing an economic growth agenda with a clear path forward which makes it easier for businesses, unions and the public to understand what we want to achieve and to add their support to the cause.

We envisage that this will lead to a package of measures focussed on building our competitive strengths and raising productivity.

In February this year I wrote to the Prime Minister, outlining my three priorities as Minister of Economic Development. Specifically these are to:

Improve business support programmes;
Develop areas of competitive strength; and
Bring an economic development perspective to major government decisions such as the Rugby World Cup.

One of the first steps towards improved business support programmes is a new grants scheme called the International Growth Fund which was launched on 1 July by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.

This Fund will be focused on supporting those firms most likely to operate successfully internationally and who will deliver the greatest benefit to the New Zealand economy as a whole.

NZTE has also restructured the delivery of the new grants programme in order to better assess and meet business need.

As a result, there will be more targeted engagement with business which will enable better, more relevant solutions.

We have also been reviewing existing government business assistance programmes with a focus on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of these.

New Zealand also needs to increase its share of existing markets as well as develop new markets, products and services around areas of competitive strength - our primary products.

To ensure we have an export lead recovery we are investing in some key initiatives. They include:

Ensuring public research and science institutions are more responsive to business needs and better support business opportunities in our areas of competitive strength.

Assessing the merits of proposals to create a network of food research development and commercialisation centres. Good progress is being made in this area and I expect to be providing advice to my Cabinet colleagues on ways forward in the very near future.

We have also replaced "Fast Forward" with initiatives that more effectively link research, development and commercial activities in the primary sectors and address impediments to economic growth. I plan on working closely with the Ministers of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries on specific initiatives over the course of this year. Can I add aquaculture is an example an area where we can develop new food products and develop new markets.

But to achieve success requires several things, not least of which is deeper and more sophisticated capital markets.

Efficient financial markets are fundamental to economic development because they attract capital and channel it to entrepreneurs and growing businesses.

And successful financial markets are often more than the sum of their parts.

The breadth and sophistication of an economy's financial infrastructure is important.

At a minimum we need exchanges where equity can be readily traded, and people willing and able to help match investment opportunities with suitable funding. Also crucial are early-stage capital markets.

I accept it is not easy to establish a venture capital industry here and acknowledge it takes time to grow, but the growth so far has been encouraging.

This government recognises and appreciates the value of the work that both the NZVCA and NZVIF have done in catalysing the development of venture capital and early stage markets in New Zealand so far.

The New Zealand Venture Investment Fund was established in June 2002 and has now made $110 million in capital commitments to six Venture Capital Funds.

Investments of both private sector capital and VIF capital combined are $232 million into 48 companies as at June 30th this year.

The Seed Co-Investment Fund has 9 approved investment partner networks and $20.9 million combined crown and private sector capital committed to 26 companies.

This government also recognises that developing a self-sustaining early stage capital market is a long game.

We recognise that some aspects of our capital markets are underdeveloped and that the task has been made doubly difficult with the current economic downturn.

So what direction and attitude is the new government taking towards protecting and encouraging venture capital.

The first step is recognising that for venture capital to succeed the underlying business settings have to be put into place.

I am pleased to say in a short period of time we are making good progress,

And I think this first year of the new government will be judged as a foundational year for steering the economy back on track.

For example there are a number of programmes in place.

We have established a Tax Working Group which is taking a medium term look at taxation issues. This working group is chaired by Professor Bob Buckle and will report back by the end of the year.

It's been asked to give advice on how we can have a competitive tax system and means it will also be watching carefully developments in Australia with its tax review.

In recent week the government has also announced the 2025 Productivity Taskforce chaired by Dr Don Brash.

This will identify policy setting and changes to deliver productivity growth and it has a tight time frame of having to release an initial prescription by October this year.

You will be aware the Regulation Review led by Rodney Hide is well underway and will no doubt lead to a significant reduction in business red tape.

Just this week, my colleague the Immigration Minister Jonathan Coleman, and I released a new Business Migrant scheme

Developed on the back of the Job Summit and after consultation with industry leaders this new package is designed to attract high value investor migrants.

In other words it's a way to attract more equity into the country.

You may be aware the Finance Minister is leading a rewrite of the foreign investment rules to attract further balanced investment

So you can see there is no shortage of ideas on how to create the best business settings.

More specifically there is also some fresh thinking being applied to the issues of capital investment markets.

Many of you will be aware we have the Capital Markets Development Taskforce underway.

It is designed to address a range of various tax and regulatory issues on behalf of the industry.

This Taskforce is in effect an acknowledgement by the government that efficient financial markets are a key part of an environment in which the private sector can thrive.

And for those of you who have contributed and made submissions so far I would like to express the government's appreciation.

It is too early for me to say what results we will receive from the Capital Markets Development Taskforce but I can say that my colleagues and I will be keen to implement any recommendations that are beneficial for the growth of our economy.

You may also be aware my officials with the Ministry of Economic Development are conducting a review of the Venture Investment Fund.

I am not due to receive the results until September but can I signal now that I am persuaded by the work of the fund so far, and see no value in undermining or dismantling the important progress in developing venture capital funds.

In recent weeks I have met with Sir John Anderson and Fransceka Banga to discuss venture investment.

It was pleasing to hear about some of the businesses and their products assisted by venture capital investments.

Of course one step the VIF board considered necessary to help cope with the challenging economic climate is the creation of the annex fund.

It seems to me to have been a logical move to help businesses feel confident about the availability of follow-up funding at a time when the sources of capital are drying up.

I have also had the opportunity to meet with Jenny Morel from Number 8 Ventures, she is, as many of you are aware, a strong advocate for venture investment.

It was an interesting meeting. Jenny argued strongly about the ratios behind the government investment. She argues there is a greater need for the Crown to offer more one to one ratio's for venture investment.

While I am not going to rush to judgement on this, I do want to say I may have some sympathy for the argument, and simply note it as a matter worthy for further consideration.

I say this because I think it's important to signal the government still retains an open mind on developing venture capital initiatives.

So can I start to conclude by saying good progress is being made toward fixing the underlying business fundamentals in the New Zealand economy.

Get that right and the prospects for venture capital gets better.

And can I leave you with this thought. The economic climate is beginning to change. Just this week the share market was back up to the 3 thousand points marks.

The language of the economic commentators is beginning to subtly change - less talk about the bottom falling out of the economy and more talk about how long it will take to recover.

So I think its time to embrace a more positive tone.

Less worry about how we can protect ourselves - and more thinking about what opportunity exists .

And the government will continue with its clear and consistent goal to get our economy back on the road to recovery.

I wish you the very best of luck for the New Zealand Venture Capital Association's annual general meeting....and look forward to meeting and talking to some of you later in the evening.

Opening Address to the 2009 EDANZ Conference

nospam@example.com (admin) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:37:00 +1200

Priorities for New Zealand in the current economic environment

Introduction: Weathering the downturn

The Government understands that times are currently tough for businesses and local communities and that Economic Development Agencies are working hard to respond to these challenges.

You are "on the ground" delivering the solutions and knowledge that we need to emerge strongly from this recession.

I encourage you to continue in your efforts to deliver regional economic development activities which will help strengthen the national economy

As you know, what began as a crisis in the American and European financial markets rapidly developed into a concerted worldwide recession.

Many governments are still working to stabilise troubled banks and cope with rapidly rising unemployment.

New Zealand has avoided the worst effects of the crisis due to our sound banking sector, an export base that gives us a comparative advantage in hard times, swift and measured responses by our Government and the Reserve Bank - and of course the resilience that ordinary Kiwis and businesses have displayed across the country.

Our banks remain stable and are now, along with Australia's and Canada's, among the most stable in the world. The retail deposit and wholesale funding guarantees that we have maintained are working.

Our export base gives us a comparative advantage in hard times. While consumers are putting off buying new cars or flatscreen televisions, they still need our dairy products, meat, wine and fruit.

The Reserve Bank's OCR cuts have lowered borrowing costs for individuals and firms.

We have aimed to protect the hardest-hit New Zealanders from the worst effects of the recession. We are focused on helping businesses protect jobs and giving New Zealanders who lose their jobs the best chance of finding a new one.

As a result, we have committed to a fiscal stimulus that will amount to about 5% of GDP over this year and the next - high by world standards.

While our path has been smoothed by these actions, we have not escaped the global downturn - firms are facing challenges including tighter credit and falling domestic and overseas demand.

Ultimately, we must use this recession as the occasion to shift our country onto a higher growth path. To truly "recover", we must improve the way we do business, and make hard work and innovation more rewarding.

We have a real chance to emerge from the recession in a stronger position than most other countries - with higher levels of productivity growth and improved export competitiveness.

Today, I'd like to talk with you about the opportunities that I see amidst the current turmoil.

First, I want to introduce some important themes from the Government's new Economic Growth Agenda, and some steps we have already taken towards lifting productivity and creating a better environment for growth.

Second, I want to talk about the areas in which local economic development organisations can support and strengthen our work.

Seizing the opportunities will take some hard work - and a lot of the creativity that our country is known for - but I believe that we are up to the task.

A New Focus

My colleagues and I spent our first 100 days in office focusing on quickly implementing our campaign promises to make it easier for employers, workers, and households to weather the downturn.

In that time, we accomplished a lot in the way of loosening restrictions on business flexibility and pumping a significant amount of money into the economy to support jobs - from the $1 billion in income tax cuts that have been putting more money in average workers' pockets since April to the nearly $500 million worth of roading, housing, and school projects that we accelerated.

Now, while we're still concerned with helping ordinary Kiwis and businesses ride through the recession, we also have to think about the future for New Zealand - how we will emerge from the downturn in a stronger competitive position.

To address this, my colleagues and I are developing a new Economic Growth Agenda. One thing that won't change is our commitment to putting common-sense ideas into practice - this plan will be about actions, not words.

I expect economic development agencies to have a strong role in delivering and supporting our Agenda in a number of key areas.

Key Message: Emerging stronger

The Economic Growth Agenda announced by the Prime Minister on 15 July isn't just about surviving - it's about maximising our opportunities and emerging from this downturn in a stronger position relative to the countries we compete with internationally.

We are seeking to raise New Zealanders' incomes and narrow the income gap that has opened with Australia and our other trading partners.

We aspire to raise exports from their current level of 30 percent of GDP to 40 percent, and achieve income parity with Australia by 2025.

To do so, we'll need to play to our strengths - our expertise in food production, our beautiful landscape, unique culture and clean environment, and our Kiwi ingenuity - and take good opportunities to create and market higher-value goods and services.

This will mean improving our economic fundamentals and making smart investments in six key areas:

We will invest in productive infrastructure, including new road, school and hospital projects and an ultra-fast broadband network that will help our firms overcome the "tyranny of distance" to reach new customers abroad.

We will create a world-class tax system that rewards hard work and innovativeness.

We will reform regulatory road-blocks such as the unwieldy Resource Management Act.

We will put discipline into government spending and provide front-line services at a lower cost.

We will invest in lifting the literacy and numeracy skills of our young people.

We will implement responsive and targeted business assistance and align our innovation system with industry needs.

As Minister for Economic Development, I am leading work in the sixth area, and working with my colleagues on several others. In particular, I would like to talk to you about three of my key priorities under the Economic Growth Agenda:

Overhauling business support programmes to improve the benefits gained from investment in firms with high international growth potential;
Building on our areas of competitive strength and our science and innovation system; and

Ensuring lasting economic benefits to New Zealand from major initiatives such as the Rugby World Cup.

Clearly, much of the Economic Growth Agenda is relevant to economic development agencies, as you are often the "front line" of support for growing and established businesses.

I understand that your priorities, including digital development, the Rugby World Cup Legacy Project, building management capability in firms, local infrastructure investment, and acting as a conduit between firms and Government growth and research funds, often relate to our goals, and I welcome your input and engagement.

Economic Growth Agenda

Although my colleagues and I are still developing further the details of the Economic Growth Agenda, we have already taken some initial steps. For example, we have:

Launched New Zealand Trade and Enterprise's new International Growth Fund, which is focused on supporting the firms that are most likely to succeed internationally and bring the greatest benefit to the New Zealand economy as a whole. This, along with our wider Review of Business Assistance, will change the way we deliver growth funding to firms.

Created the Primary Growth Partnership, which will provide up to $70 million in matching funds for primary sector research. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry will be delivering funds by the end of the year.

Invested $1.5 billion over ten years to roll out ultra-fast broadband to businesses, schools, hospitals, and 75% of NZ homes.

Started reviewing clunky regulation including the Resource Management Act and aquaculture related legislation.

Set up the NZ Insulation Fund to improve health and energy efficiency by helping home owners and occupants fit homes with insulation and clean heating devices.

Furthermore, we've got several important priorities coming up that promise to be quite relevant to your work as local economic development agencies:

I am working with Jonathan Coleman, the Minister of Immigration, on a new Business Migration Package, which we announced on the 28th of July.

We aim to ensure that new investor and entrepreneur migrant rules bring the most benefit to New Zealand by conducting targeted marketing campaigns overseas and linking new migrants into domestic business and investment communities. I expect EDAs to play a key role in doing so.

I am currently considering options for creating a network of food research development and commercialisation centres. This would establish a number of industry hubs across the country, allowing small and medium sized companies access to the facilities they need to develop new products and enter new markets.

I am working with Murray McCully, the Minister for the Rugby World Cup, to ensure that we are taking the actions needed to ensure that the event brings lasting benefits to New Zealand.

While the Rugby World Cup is a fantastic opportunity for us as a nation, its success hinges on getting things right at the regional level, with stadium development and local tourism and business initiatives. We expect to work with EDANZ and economic development organisations to link our "big picture" with regional activities.

I welcome your input to and participation in the Economic Growth Agenda that we are putting forward. Much of the important work of "making it happen" will take place at a local and regional level.

You are already involved in some of my key priorities, such as the Rugby World Cup and business migration, and I hope that you will continue to engage with us as work continues on issues such as business assistance grants, research and development initiatives, broadband roll-out and digital literacy, and infrastructure investments.

Conclusion.

While New Zealand is still facing significant challenges as a result of the world financial crisis, rapid action, good policies, and a dash of Kiwi resilience have brought us through the most dangerous times. However, we must now face up to the longer-term threats.

Over the past decades, our incomes have not kept up with those of our competitors, and our trade balance has slipped into negative territory.

Our Government seeks to reverse these trends by making innovativeness and hard work more rewarding.

As a result, we are laying out an ambitious Economic Growth Agenda that will commit to common-sense actions rather than just more words.

I've laid out a few of our actions, and expect to have a lot more to announce in good time.

Thank you for your time, and I look forward to working with you.

Marine Energy Fund Opens

nospam@example.com (admin) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:20:00 +1200

Applications are now open for the third round of the Marine Energy Deployment Fund, which aims to get wave and tidal stream energy devices operating in New Zealand waters.

Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee says the purpose of the fund is to bring forward the development of marine energy in New Zealand by facilitating early deployment and adaptation of the technology.

“New Zealand is an attractive proposition for marine energy. We have a long coastline and significant wave energy potential – estimated to be around 8GW, with a further 1GW of tidal energy,” said Mr Brownlee.

“We already generate an impressive 65% of our electricity from renewable sources such as hydro, geothermal and wind, and there’s potential for more.”

“It makes sense to explore emerging generation technologies, like marine, to ensure New Zealand has a diverse and secure electricity system into the future,” he said.

The upcoming round of the Marine Energy Deployment Fund offers $2 million for pre-commercial wave and tidal stream energy devices deployed in New Zealand waters.

“Ideally the project will help to inform the government and the wider marine energy industry of the key technical challenges and the economic, environmental and social benefits and costs associated with deploying wave and tidal stream technologies in New Zealand.”

Applications for round three of this fund open on Friday 31 July 2009 and will close on Monday 23 November 2009. For more information, see www.eeca.govt.nz/marine-energy-fund.

Background:

The $8million Marine Energy Deployment Fund is a four year fund. Two rounds have been allocated, as follows:

Round one: $1.85 million to Crest Energy.

Round two: $760,000 to Wave Energy Technology New Zealand (WET-NZ).

Biodiesel Grants Scheme off to a strong start

nospam@example.com (admin) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:21:00 +1200

A grants scheme set up to encourage biodiesel production in New Zealand is off to a strong start, with five companies set to take part, Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee announced today.

“Five biodiesel production companies have signed or been offered contracts to participate in the Biodiesel Grants Scheme.”

“ For a fledgling industry, I am impressed that we already have this number of companies ready to take part and sell the quantities of biodiesel required to qualify under the scheme,” Mr Brownlee said.

The companies (and their locations) are: Biodiesel Oils NZ (Tamaki), Ecodiesel (Onehunga), NZ Ester Fuels (Tuakau, South Auckland), Environ Fuels (Te Kuiti), and Biodiesel New Zealand (Christchurch).

“The companies are using a range of sustainable feedstocks to produce biodiesel, such as tallow, used cooking oil and rapeseed grown as a break crop,” the Minister said.

“The scheme will help increase the fuel choices available for New Zealand consumers and businesses.”

“Biodiesel blends can be used for a range of uses, including shipping and industrial use, as well as in vehicles.” Mr Brownlee said.

Participating companies are required to report sales of biodiesel on a monthly basis, in order to be awarded the grant. The biodiesel must be made in New Zealand, and meet the Engine Fuel Specifications Regulations.

Background:

Under the scheme, which started on 1 July 2009, a grant of up to 42.5 cents per litre for biodiesel (or biodiesel content of a biodiesel blend) is available to biodiesel producers.
The grant is paid monthly in arrears to New Zealand producers who sell 10,000 or more litres of biodiesel each month.
Funding of $36 million over three years is set aside for the Biodiesel Grants Scheme.
The Engine Fuel Specification Regulations limit the retail sale of biodiesel to a blend of 5% biodiesel in mineral diesel, which can be used in all diesel engines.
More information: www.eeca.govt.nz/biodiesel-grants