Alternatives to Additional Transmission Lines To Meet Escalating Demand in Northland and Auckland - Assignment Example

As the operator of the national electricity grid in New Zealand, Transpower has the responsibility to ensure that adequate power reaches those areas of the country that need it. As things stand, the rising demand for electricity in the above-mentioned areas has necessitated Transpower coming up with a proposal to erect additional transmission lines, to the tune of $1.5 billion. This proposed investment is up for approval before the Electricity Commission, and the approval rests on Transpower proving that there are no viable alternatives to such an investment.

There is the matter of alternatives that need to be explored, as indicated in the case, that negates the need for massive infrastructure investments in transmission and power generation, via distributed power generation facilities, for instance, that are erected close to the demand, in this case, close to the areas that need them. There are also ideas floated with regard to the reduction of so-called peak demand, and the possible construction of additional power stations to meet the increased needs of some areas, notably Northland and Auckland.

The paper discusses these and other alternatives, and evaluates their feasibility alongside the proposed investment in additional transmission lines (Daniels 2004). II. . e trend for power consumption ought to be positive in the long term, given the steady growth in the economy over the past few decades, and prospects for continued growth. It is ranked as the 65th largest economy in the world in 2011, with PPP GDP at $123.3 billion, and per capita GDP at $27,900, which places New Zealand at the 48th spot in terms of GDP per person.

Services make up close to 72 percent of GDP, followed by the industrial sector at 24 percent. Key industries are the processing of wood, food, paper, and textiles; mining; tourism; banking and finance; and the manufacture of transport and other machinery and equipment. In terms of production of electricity, New Zealand production was pegged at 42 billion kWh, ranked 54th in the world in 2009, while consumption was 39.02 billion kWh in 2008, ranked 54th as well globally, making New Zealand self-sufficient in terms of power generation, with its net power generation greater than demand as of 2009.

It consumes all of the natural gas that it produces, at 4.481 billion cubic meters in 2011, ranked 5oth worldwide in terms of production and 68th worldwide in terms of consumption of natural gas. The country has proven oil reserves of 112.5 billion barrels, ranked 68th in the world, and oil consumption is pegged at 149,700 barrels a day, versus production of about 60,480 barrels a day in 2010, making the country a net importer of oil. These latter figures for natural gas and oil are relevant in terms of the fuel inputs to power generation (Central Intelligence Agency 2012). III. Industry Overview, Transmission Infrastructure There is merit likewise in a general overview of the power industry in New Zealand, in order to map out where and how alternatives to massive investments in transmission lines can be had and done.