Solid Energy

Solid Energy

Type	State owned enterprise
Founded	1987, Wellington
Headquarters	Wellington, New Zealand
Key people	CEO: Don Elder
Industry	mining, coal
Products	Coal, renewable energy fuels
Revenue	$552 million NZD (2008)[1]
Employees	772[1]
Website	www.solidenergy.co.nz/

Solid Energy is the largest coal mining company in New Zealand and is a state owned enterprise of the New Zealand Government.

The company was formed from the former government department State Coal Mines. It was then established as a state owned enterprise called Coal Corporation in 1987, and renamed Solid Energy New Zealand Limited in 1997. It currently has a turnover of NZ$552 million and produces 4.5 million tons of coal annually.^[1]

The company mines extensively in New Zealand's Waikato and the West Coast regions. Approximately half the coal mined is exported, as it is high value with little moisture, sulphur, or other impurities. Much of this is to China, India and Japan where it is used in the power generation and coke industries and for the manufacture of steel and other metals. Major domestic users include the Huntly Power Station and New Zealand Steel at Glenbrook.

Coal operations

Solid Energy is responsible for approximately 85% of New Zealand's coal production.^[2] Annual production is around 4 million tonnes, more than half of which is exported.^[3]

Renewable energy operations

Solid Energy has invested heavily in the development of renewable energy in New Zealand, and, as such, it has three main lines:

Nature's Flame produces wood pellets for home heating. This provides smokeless fuel to meet stringent new clean air standards. Nature's Flame is the largest manufacturer of wood pellets in the Southern Hemisphere^[1], producing from three factories, located in Christchurch, Taupo and Rotorua. Nature's Flame began in 2003, when Solid Energy purchased a small wood pellet company based at Rolleston.^[4]

Biodiesel NZ produces biodiesel from used vegetable oil and from oilseed rape crops. The business began with acquisition of Canterbury Biodiesel, a Christchurch based company, in 2007.^[5] Production capacity was rapidly increased, initially with a target of 70 million litres a year by 2011.^[1] However, production plans for biodiesel were reconsidered in the light of significant decreases in the oil price over 2008 and 2009.^[6]

Switch was launched in 2008, providing renewable energy solutions for businesses and homes.^[1] This incorporated Sensible Heat, a Nelson-based solar hot water heating company acquired in July 2007.^[7]

Opposition groups

Concerns have been raised about the environmental performance of Solid Energy particularly at the Stockton Mine on the West Coast. In 2006, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment proposed to undertake a review of the environmental performance of the company in 2008.^[8]

Solid Energy has also been criticised by the Ngawakau Riverwatch group and environmental groups and organisations such as Greenpeace, Forest and Bird, The Buller Conservation Group and the Save Happy Valley Coalition. The criticisms include carbon emissions, environmental damage and greenwashing in respect of the impacts of mining.^{[citation needed]}

Resource consents were granted to Solid Energy for the development and operation of the Cypress mine on land near Waimangaroa.^[9] This was opposed by the environmental group Save Happy Valley Campaign (SHVC). They claim that the mine will contribute to acid mine drainage, climate change and the possible extinction of a species of Powelliphanta snail.

On 27 May 2007, Sunday Star Times reported that Thompson and Clark Investigations Ltd, a security firm employed by Solid Energy, used private individuals to spy on SHVC.^[10] A second spying episode was alleged involving Thompson and Clark attempting to employ another spy to obtain information from SHVC.^[11] Solid Energy claimed that they had no knowledge of that instance of an attempt by Thompson and Clark to employ a spy. ^[12]

See also

• Energy in New Zealand

References

External links

• Solid Energy, CoalNZ - corporate websites
• Nature's Flame, Biodiesel NZ, Switch - subsidiaries
• Save Happy Valley Coalition - opposition group