New Zealand’s Energy Efficiency & Conservation Authority (EECA) and the New Zealand Geothermal Association have jointly launched a new guide on how businesses can use geothermal heat for smarter heating and cooling.
The geoheat business guide highlights the nation’s geothermal resources and the technology options available to businesses.
These range from direct use of geothermal fluid for process heat to advanced ground source and high-temperature industrial heat pumps, which can supply up to 200–280 °C.
The new report also covers the full development process, from feasibility studies to installation and maintenance.
It also provides an overview of regulatory and consent requirements under the Resource Management Act (RMA), and includes case studies showing proven applications that have cut energy costs and improved operational efficiency.
In a foreword to the report, Kennie Tsui, Chief Executive of the New Zealand Geothermal Association, highlights how the country is “blessed” with an abundance of renewable geothermal energy.
The most familiar of these are the high-temperature geothermal resources (exceeding 150°C) that are located primarily within the Central North Island’s volcanic region and at Ngāwhā in Northland, which have been extensively used for electricity generation and industrial direct use for over 70 years.
The new business guide, Tsui notes, “focuses on the less familiar but equally beneficial” temperatures from 150°C down to 10°C that are present at the lower end of the geothermal spectrum.
“In fact, at the lower end of the geothermal spectrum, shallow ground temperatures are influenced by solar radiation and are about 2°C above average air temperature. This means that geothermal is available everywhere. Across the country this ranges from about 10°C in the south and alpine areas to 18°C in the far north. These temperatures can be used for heating and cooling with a geothermal or ground source heat pump.”
The report highlights how proven technologies can meet a wide range of temperature needs for a variety of industrial applications and related uses.
Case studies — including Christchurch Airport, which uses 13–14°C groundwater with heat pumps for efficient building heating and cooling — also demonstrate measurable operational cost reductions, improved efficiency and reliable heat supply.
“Unlike solar or wind, geoheat provides a round-the-clock, weather-independent heat source, critical for industries with baseload heating needs,” the EECA notes in its introduction to the report on its website.
“This reliability reduces exposure to energy supply volatility and peak electricity demand charges.”