Events

Masterclass: Renewable Electricity in New Zealand

Funded through NERI and in conjunction with the Energy Federation of New Zealand, Victoria University of Wellington hosted a Masterclass that provided integrated perspectives on renewable electricity futures for New Zealand and examined which technologies will benefit New Zealand the most. Participants focused on technical, economic, and environmental comparisons and trade-offs among different energy options, including issues in technology application. The class considered policy options and international policy experience relevant to New Zealand, as well as future energy scenarios from Europe and other parts of the world.

Lead facilitator:
Dr Eric Martinot, Tsinghua University, Beijing

with:
Dr Mark Diesendorf, University of New South Wales, Sydney
Associate Professor Ralph Chapman, Victoria University of Wellington
http://www.vuw.ac.nz/geo/people/ralph-chapman/index.html

Topics:

• The broader context of carbon emission reductions, and energy security
• Basics of renewable energy technologies and economics
• Electricity systems, supply and demand, and grid-integration of renewables
• Comparisons of environmental impacts and trade-offs, both local and global
• Key issues in technology assessment
• Policy options for New Zealand and international experience, both national and municipal
• Thinking about energy futures: what is realistic?

Biography of Dr Eric Martinot
Dr. Eric Martinot currently resides in Beijing, China, as visiting faculty at Tsinghua University, where he teaches renewable energy. He is also a research fellow with the Worldwatch Institute and lead author of the REN21 Renewables Global Status Report. From 2000 to 2003 he served as the renewable energy program manager for the Global Environment Facility (GEF) at the World Bank in Washington DC. As program manager he guided the GEF’s renewable energy strategies and synthesised knowledge and experience with renewable energy markets, policies, and investments around the world. He has served as consultant on international energy programs for the UN and World Bank, as a senior scientist with the Stockholm Environment Institute, and as the convening lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He has taught energy and the environment at the University of Maryland and Tufts University, and is the author of more than 65 publications on renewable energy and energy efficiency. He has MA and PhD degrees in Energy and Resources from the University of California at Berkeley, and a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

For further information about the Masterclass, please contact Associate Professor Ralph Chapman ralph.chapman@vuw.ac.nz