\u201cThis is certainly an exceptional circumstance … so we\u2019re currently exploring Section 330 of the RMA, which would enable us to get started while going through the consenting process,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The aim was to begin construction in June, and Scott said it could not happen soon enough.<\/p>\n
The solar farm would reduce diesel consumption for electricity by about 75%.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess the project\u2019s kind of proven its value now. One of the reasons why we\u2019ve done it is not just to address the high power prices that residents on the island were already paying, but to take out some of this vulnerability, the susceptibility to high diesel prices which we\u2019re experiencing right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rakiura resident Sharon Ross. Photo \/ RNZ, Mark Papalii<\/p>\n
Long-time resident Sharon Ross said she was setting aside cash in preparation for this winter\u2019s power price rises, and she dreaded finding out just how much of an impact global fuel increases would have.<\/p>\n
In a normal year, her household spent between $500 and $800 a month on electricity.<\/p>\n
Ross, who is also the co-owner of the island\u2019s only petrol station, said fuel at the pump now cost well over $4 a litre.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are expecting this winter is going to be a lot harder than other winters have been for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Southland district councillor Jon Spraggon, from the Rakiura ward, said the council-owned power station had issued a warning to residents to conserve electricity where they could.<\/p>\n
Southland District councillor Jon Spraggon. Photo \/ RNZ, Mark Papalii<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s worth noting the price of diesel for the council for the power supply went up 45% in the last week, so that\u2019s going to have to be passed on somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n
There were limitations on how quickly the council could raise the price, but residents could expect a few \u201cshort steps\u201d up in their power bills.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no way we can hold the power price down, and people are going to have to look at the amount of power that they actually use.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prices at Stewart Island’s only petrol station have passed $4 a litre. Photo \/ RNZ, Mark Papalii<\/p>\n
Spraggon said he was optimistic the solar farm could be running by Christmas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe community board chair and I are spending a lot of time trying to get this through as fast as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Residents seeking their own solar power<\/p>\n
Business owner Helen Cave said the power bills for her hotel and fish processing business were already more than $10,000 a month each.<\/p>\n
The potential for further price hikes this winter had prompted her to explore alternatives.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d rather pay more than not have it, but I have ordered some solar panels.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morgan Bellworthy Hamilton said he, too, was looking at ways to reduce his reliance on the grid, even with the promise of an island-wide transition.<\/p>\n
Stewart Island business owner Helen Cave. Photo \/ RNZ, Mark Papalii<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been talking about solar, and I think it probably is the best option for us, as a house, to get solar.\u201d<\/p>\n
Snuggery Cafe co-owner Simon Moir, who used solar to offset his power bill by about 30%, said he was excited for the whole-island upgrade but wary that it would not be a silver bullet.<\/p>\n
Rakiura\u2019s climate made it a difficult place to rely on the sun for electricity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m pretty excited for it, but I don\u2019t know how much it\u2019s actually going to fully cover and what sort of price reduction that will truly create … we don\u2019t have a lot of sunshine here just because of where we\u2019re positioned in the world, and we get a lot of cloudy days.\u201d<\/p>\n
Snuggery Caf\u00e9 co-owner Simon Moir. Photo \/ RNZ, Mark Papalii<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I\u2019m really grateful that our Southland mayor has finally taken the true steps to get it across the line and get the money from the Government to pursue this.\u201d<\/p>\n
A project long in the making<\/p>\n
Stewart Island\u2019s solar project follows a mooted hydro scheme and a failed wind farm.<\/p>\n
Ross said that, when it came to switching the island off diesel, there had been years of false starts.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we moved here 14 years ago, we seemed to be in the exact same conversation. And they kept on doing studies, and they would revisit these studies, and nothing happened. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd we\u2019re thinking, if this is the third, well, probably fourth time that it\u2019s been reviewed, and nothing is going to come of it again, it would be so incredibly frustrating.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scott said that, while there were still hurdles to work through, residents could be assured that this time was different.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t accept failure, and I\u2019ve given the island my word that this project\u2019s going to go ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n
The volatility of global oil markets was another reason to make the project happen as soon as possible, he said.<\/p>\n
The solar farm would not bring prices down to mainland levels, but would help lower bills and make them more predictable.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do need to factor in the maintenance and the replacement of the solar farm. So the prices are still going to be relatively high, but they are going to be certain and stable.\u201d<\/p>\n
– RNZ<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cThis is certainly an exceptional circumstance … so we\u2019re currently exploring Section 330 of the RMA, which would…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":370445,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[5195,138,3595,18399,802,54239,1872,78,2514,22504,111,139,69,1118,2171,801,193789,6934,61,22505],"class_list":{"0":"post-370444","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-be","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-by","11":"tag-christmas","12":"tag-costs","13":"tag-diesel","14":"tag-face","15":"tag-in","16":"tag-island","17":"tag-katie","18":"tag-new-zealand","19":"tag-newzealand","20":"tag-nz","21":"tag-of","22":"tag-plans","23":"tag-rising","24":"tag-solarpowered","25":"tag-stewart","26":"tag-to","27":"tag-todd"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370444","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=370444"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370444\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/370445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=370444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=370444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=370444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}