Geothermal a 'jewel' in city's crown

Geothermal energy exploitation is the "biggest untapped economic opportunity of our age in Rotorua", according to Red Stag Timber director Marty Verry.



And it's set to be high on the priority list for Rotorua District Council-controlled organisation Grow Rotorua, which is expected to be fully operational from early next year.



Mr Verry said that despite being in the heart of New Zealand's forestry and geothermal regions, Rotorua had missed out on significant investment in the past by failing to take advantage of the energy under its feet.



"In the last few years, several offshore and local companies have approached Red Stag and done feasibility on setting up wood processing operations in the Waipa Valley. It's generally a preferred location for logistics and skilled staffing, but we are told it is not competitive with the likes of Kawerau and Taupo because they have access to geothermal heat.



"We also have New Zealand based processors/exporters that would move to Waipa Valley if geothermal energy was available."



Mr Verry said Red Stag, New Zealand's largest sawmill, was likely to increase production from 380,000cu m to 600,000cu m in the coming years, meaning an increased demand for steam and electricity - a demand geothermal energy could help fill.



He said the Waipa Mill sat on the edge of a large unexplored geothermal field.



"Red Stag's testing to date, including bores to 200m, shows the heat profile is consistent and supportive of a viable field. If this field could be fully researched, consented and developed, it would facilitate very significant investment in the Rotorua region."



Mr Verry said the Resource Management Act process was "uncertain and long" and was too expensive for Red Stag to pursue on its own.



"It's high investment versus high risk so the trade-off meant it was too difficult for us to prioritise capital into."



He believes companies like Red Stag, local iwi, councils and economic development agencies needed to pool their resources for the good of the region. He would be happy for Grow Rotorua to take the lead, with its commercial focus and mandate to drive economic development.



Grow Rotorua chairman John Green said making better use of geothermal energy was one of the key priorities for the organisations. The Rotorua Sustainable Economic Growth Strategy, which it is tasked with implementing, noted that while Rotorua had "successfully leveraged its geothermal resources for tourism purposes" relatively little had been done to tap them for energy.



It went on to identify geothermal energy supply as having a "high" potential to generate significant employment growth and economic output in Rotorua.



Mr Green said Grow Rotorua would be implementing a programme that would include consultation with the community, iwi and industry stakeholders, to identify the barriers and where the possibilities lay with geothermal energy.



"Grow Rotorua needs to explore and bring to the public where those opportunities are," he said.



He said any commercial exploitation would have to be careful of physical features, such as geysers and mud pools, so as not to jeopardise the environment or tourism. "Science understands the [geothermal] fields a lot better now than 20 years ago, with things like reinjection technology."



Mr Green agreed geothermal energy, if harnessed correctly, could bring investment and development to the region and he said he was excited by the prospect of helping make that happen.



"It's just a wonderful opportunity, an untapped resource," he said. "It's a sustainable, wonderful asset to have, the jewel of Rotorua's crown."



Mr Green said newly appointed chief executive Francis Pauwels would take up his role next month, with two more appointments to Grow Rotorua to be made before Christmas. He expected the organisation to be fully operational by the end of January.