A report by Elemental Group summer intern, Hannah Konings, a University of Otago Honours student in Energy Science and Technology concludes that offshore wind can diversify and support electrical generation in New Zealand. Hannah’s report looked at how three 1 GW offshore wind developments located in Southland, Taranaki and Waikato could be incorporated into the grid creating greater renewable energy diversity and decreasing our reliance on non-renewables such as coal and gas. Hannah’s report shows that, on average, offshore wind generation is higher in winter months when electricity demand is also higher. Further, the analysis shows that generation in winter does not materially decline in a dry year, which could help to support New Zealand’s security of supply in a dry winter scenario. Hannah presented this report at the 2023 New Zealand Wind Energy Association Summit. You can view Hannah’s full report using the link below.

Elemental provided Operations and Wellsite Geology support from programme writing through to end of well reporting and submission for the Maari Growth Project, offshore Taranaki. Elemental worked to assist OMV’s Subsurface team optimally position 4 high angle appraisal/development wells drilled with the Ensco 107, while collecting relevant reservoir data to input into ongoing reservoir modelling. In addition, we provided similar support on two exploration wells drilled with the Kan Tan IV in parallel, ensuring that suitable levels of high quality data were efficiently extracted throughout the programme, and delivered in time to allow efficient decision making.

Elemental completed an Energy Transition Accelerator Opportunities Assessment (ETA) for Dominion Salt Ltd. Considering Dominion Salt's strategic and asset management plans, their ETA assessed stationary energy use and related emissions across all sites. It identified new technologies, process changes, energy efficiency and heat recovery and sustainable fuel switching options for fossil fuel assets such as boilers, evaporators and salt drying plant. Supported by a financial assessment of the opportunities, the Elemental team formulated an emissions reduction pathway for the Dominion Salt management board.

Elemental is providing design, project management and engineering services for solar-PV & battery projects across 13 Caribbean Island nations. The combined projects total more than 7 MWp capacity and 7MWh of energy storage. The UAE-CREF is funded by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) and executed in partnership with UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MoFAIC), and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (MASDAR). The projects increase the renewables share of generation in each country, and in some cases, deliver electricity to villages previously without a grid source of power.

Elemental completed Environmental Management Plans to mitigate potential impacts from Solar PV arrays in Tonga, the Solomon Islands, Niue, Pohnpei, Nauru, Tuvalu and Kiribati. Elemental has also completed an Environmental & Social Impact Assessment for a 600kW array in Niue. This project consisted of an environmental baseline study including; ecology, geology, air and water quality, noise, rare, threatened, and endangered species, protected areas, and other ecologically-sensitive habitats that could be affected by the project. Our assessment considered the Socio-cultural and economic impacts, including the identification of cultural heritage and archaeological sites on the island.

Elemental assisted the Operator from early planning and risk assessment (including pre drill studies including a prospect review, pore pressure assessment, shallow aquifer risk assessment) of the onshore Kohatukai-1 Well in Taranaki. This included operation planning, procurement of services, geological programme writing and implementation, operational support, and finally reporting and project close out.

Elemental assisted an operator with their multi-well abandonment programme onshore, South Island. We engineered the abandonment philosophy, programmes, coordinated contracting and assisted with project management and regulatory documentation requirements.

Elemental completed Energy Transition Accelerator Opportunities Assessments (ETA) for the Taranaki and Whanganui District Health Boards. These ETA's recommended fuel switching, energy efficiency and process improvements to achieve zero onsite fossil fuel burn for stationary heating at hospitals by 2025. The primary opportunity identified for carbon reduction at each DHB was fuel-switching away from natural gas boilers, towards heat pump heating systems.

This research was a collaboration between Elemental Group, Victoria University and ERM. The focus was to explore if feasible re-use options exist for offshore structures after production activities cease. The study looked at international frameworks, cost benefit analysis, ecological studies, marine mammal mapping, and community attitudes and awareness. The study concluded that early stakeholder and iwi engagement is key, and while motile species will leave the area of rig decommissioning, it is unlikely to provoke broad scale exclusion, and there are several mitigation steps available to reduce negative consequences.

Elemental Group have formed a joint collaboration with Helix Energy Solutions for the awarded 5-well complete abandonment project of the Tui Field, to be performed by the Helix Q7000 and 10K Intervention Riser System (IRS). The Q7000 is expected to mobilise Q1 2023 to the Tui Field, offshore Taranaki, and perform the work in three stages including well abandonment, recovery of XTs and wellhead severance and recovery.

We worked with a service company who were competing in a design competition for a 35 well abandonment campaign on the North West Shelf, Australia. Elemental facilitated a risk identification workshop, trained the service company personnel in the basics of well abandonment design and QC’d the designs before submission to the operator.

Jadestone Energy (Australia) was seeking to purchase the Maari Field from OMV. The Maari Field is an offshore oil field in production offshore Taranaki. Elemental Group was commissioned to support the Transition team and, in accordance with the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) for the proposed purchase, develop and identify the regulatory approvals and compliance management requirements relating to operating the Maari Field. This included approvals from the EPA (marine consents, marine discharge consents), oil spill and emergency spill response plans (OSCP- MNZ and ESRP-EPA), and all other New Zealand regulatory approvals related to the production entity and its operations.

Elemental developed an Energy Strategy Framework for the Nauru Government to improve Nauru’s energy efficiency and conservation. Elemental’s services included the design and implementation of a national energy balance, developing energy supply and associated emissions forecasts, analysis of the impact of renewable energy technologies on future energy supply, and a framework report. This strategy informed and developed a number of business cases for potential energy management opportunities, for consideration of funding and implementation.

Elemental created a strategic framework for the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) electricity sector; outlining technology pathways, human resourcing strategies, financing arrangements and recommending new policies to achieve climate change targets through to 2050. The Marshall Islands Electricity Roadmap presented costed, technically sound pathways to help achieve the Republic of Marshall Islands’ Nationally Determined Contributions to reduce national greenhouse gas emissions. It also presented strategies for policy, financing, and human resources to ensure success. It identified the next steps needed towards a completely decarbonised electricity sector by 2050 – or earlier. See the documentation for the roadmap below.

Elemental reviewed local and international carbon capture, utilisation and storage literature to summarise the status of carbon capture opportunities for NZ. The work covered fossil fuel recovery, biomass carbon capture, subsurface storage, geothermal opportunities and the potential for geological storage. The work was then turned into a short information booklet to communicate the work to the public. See the finished information booklet below.

The offshore wind work was commissioned to look at the feasibility of development of the offshore Taranaki bight. It concluded that the region had globally significant wind resources and that globally available technology could be applied to develop 12 GW of fixed turbine farms and 90 GW of floating wind. The team drew on international literature and industry contacts to form a modern view of the resource. View the discussion Paper via the link below.

Elemental provided a full Environmental Impact Assessment for a Water Treatment Plant in Anguar, Palau. This was required for an environmental permit to be issued to allow for the safe operation of the Water Treatment Plant and discharge of backwash into the local harbour. The workscope included a Cultural Impact Assessment, Stakeholder Engagement, and site-specific Risk Management Plan.

Masdar were the implementation agency for projects which delivered over 6.4 MW of renewable electricity to 11 small Pacific Island countries through the UAE Pacific Partnership Fund from 2014 to 2017. Elemental group prepared and presented several training courses to assist the countries and cement gains made. Two training courses were held in the UAE for senior government personnel, while courses were also held in Suva, Fiji and Auckland, New Zealand to deliver learnings at a utility operations and management level. The training programme drew upon the knowledge of industry experts and technical case studies from the implementation of the UAE-Pacific Partnership Fund projects. Elemental and IT-Power teamed up to prepare and present the course, which covered renewable energy technologies, network integration, project economics, project planning, environmental and social impacts, and health and safety.

Elemental Group completed a United Nations funded study developing a localized analysis of the effects of Electric Vehicle (EV) adoption on the electricity grid on Viti Levu Island in Fiji. It generates costed recommendations for development of infrastructure and other related changes to facilitate the levels of EV adoption defined in the Fiji Low Emissions Development Strategy scenarios for EV uptake to 2050. This project was administered by and published through the Global Green Growth Institute.

Elemental acted as the onsite owner's representative for the UAE's aid-funded wind farm on the Samoan island of Upolu. Elemental covered all aspects of delivery, from site access, to permitting, construction monitoring, trouble shooting, commission and hand over, and stakeholder management. The 550kW of turbines reduce the island’s carbon-dioxide footprint by more than 1,000 tonnes each year. The project comprised of two 55-metre wind turbines that can pivot at the base and be lowered and locked in place in less than one hour. This collapsible design helps to avoid damage from the region’s numerous cyclones.

Elemental provided design, project management and engineering services for Solar PV construction projects to increase contribution of renewable energy to electricity generation in Pacific Island nations. These projects reduced operating costs and emissions, and contributed to national targets and ambitions in four Pacific Islands countries; Nauru, Republic of Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau.