New Energy Development Centre funding announcement welcomed

Press release Venture Taranaki
9 May 2019

Taranaki’s business and civic leadership have welcomed the Government’s commitment to funding and support to enable the establishment of the National New Energy Development Centre, stating that it is a significant step in New Zealand’s transition to a low-emissions economy while leveraging the expertise that exists in Taranaki.

“Ambitious goals have been set for a low-emissions future, and as a region with a strong energy sector, Taranaki is well-positioned to be at the forefront of this challenge,” says Justine Gilliland, chief executive of Venture Taranaki, the region’s development agency.

“The National New Energy Development Centre (NNEDC) is a central component in achieving these goals, and will leverage the expertise, infrastructure, and businesses in the region, and across New Zealand and internationally, to give substance to efforts to seize the opportunities in the evolving energy landscape.”

New Plymouth Mayor and regional Mayoral Forum Chair Neil Holdom said Taranaki was looking to evolve its current energy ecosystem to support the New Zealand’s transition to a high value low carbon economy.

“This investment from Government recognises Taranaki’s engineering and energy capabilities will be critical to keeping the lights on for many years to come.”

Holdom said the region was working on further plans to grow the region’s energy ecosystem and would continue to work closely with Government Ministers to develop plans which supported NZ Inc and created opportunities for Taranaki people and businesses.

The NNEDC will be a nationwide hub, based in Taranaki, that connects industry, government, research expertise and regional leadership with a vision of creating a globally successful new-energy industry that leads New Zealand into a low-emissions future.

“The NNEDC will focus on collaboration and partnership to establish a powerful ecosystem of new-energy leaders, businesses, researchers, and government to build, test and deploy new-energy solutions,” says Justine.

“This will create new innovations to help solve our energy challenges, in addition to new opportunities for jobs and businesses. Taranaki has a strong track record of turning ideas into action, and the centre will progress energy research projects through to market uptake.”

The centre will be based in Taranaki though its focus will be both national and international.

“We know energy; it’s in our region’s DNA. Through this we can give practical substance to the ideas and research in the new energy space.”

“The Centre will work across many businesses, organisations, and skillsets, and has already received strong indications of support from across the energy and manufacturing and food sectors, as well as commitments to collaboration from leading research institutes already active in the new-energy space.”

“The support of the Government, through this investment and partnership, will enable the Centre to launch and rapidly gain momentum,” Justine says.

Attached: overview of the National New Energy Development Centre

http://img.scoop.co.nz/media/pdfs/1905/National_New_Energy_Development_Centre__Overview.pdf

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