Energy Efficiency And Renewable Energy Winners

Strictly embargoed until 8pm 21 May 2009

Announced For Awards Celebrating Energy Efficiency And Renewable Energy Winners

Winners of the 2009 Awards for excellence and innovation in energy efficiency and renewable energy were announced tonight at an awards ceremony in Auckland, hosted by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).

The Supreme winner was Radford Yarn Technologies Ltd. Radford is a Christchurch-based processor of New Zealand wool into high-end felted yarns for carpet and rug manufacture. Radford turned to renewable energy to lower their operation’s environmental footprint. Their innovative project involved the installation of New Zealand’s first specialised wood pellet boiler to produce the heat needed for the processing of wool.

The Awards showcase everyday, innovative Kiwis across the country who are implementing energy efficiency and renewable energy projects that help their organisations to reduce costs, improve productivity and improve their brand credentials through lower greenhouse gas emissions.

The combined carbon dioxide savings by all awards finalists was nearly 665,000 tonnes, equivalent to taking over 200,000 vehicles off the road for a year.

“I want to congratulate to all the winners of tonight’s awards - their projects deliver cost savings directly to the bottom line and demonstrate environmental responsibility at the same time”, said Mike Underhill, EECA Chief Executive.

‘The fantastic thing about these Awards is that they clearly show what good energy management can deliver to all kinds of organisations, no matter what their size or type. If every one of New Zealand’s 346, 000 businesses took the same approach then we would see massive energy and emission reductions worth billions to our economy.”

The winners cover nine categories, and were chosen from 27 finalists. A full break down on the winners of all categories is attached.

The Awards 2009 took place in Auckland on Thursday 21 May 2009, hosted by EECA in conjunction with principal sponsors EcoInsulation, Fujitsu General New Zealand and Shell New Zealand.

ENDS

For further information contact:
Rosemary Scoular (Communications Advisor, EECA) on 09 374 3816 or 021 522 853
Emma Williams (Senior Communications Advisor, EECA), Ph - 04 470 2545 or 027 455 5150

www.eeca.govt.nz

Awards 2009 Winners (in alphabetical order)
Celebrating excellence and innovation in energy efficiency and renewable energy

SUPREME WINNER
 Radford Yarn Technologies Limited Conversion to wood pellets for industrial heat process in Christchurch factory.

Business (Large)
 Energy for Industry / Winstone Pulp International (Joint Winner) Heat recovery plant (recovering waste heat from wood chip processing) at Winstone Pulp International’s Karioi Pulp Mill, Ohakune.

 New Zealand Steel Limited (Joint Winner) Upgrade of a pipe mill to reduce energy demand and produce a higher rate of production at Glenbrook, South Auckland.

Business (SME)
 Yealands Estate Wines Implementation of sustainability and energy efficiency initiatives in wine production facility in Marlborough.

Energy Management
 Honeywell Limited (Joint Winner) Energy performance contracting solutions.

 The University of Auckland (Joint Winner) Energy savings campaign for staff and students at Auckland University.

Innovation
 Energy for Industry / Silver Fern Farms Turning waste water sludge into energy at Silver Fern Farms’ meat processing plant, Balclutha.

Public Sector
 Department of Conservation Organisation-wide sustainability and energy management programme.

Renewable Energy
 Radford Yarn Technologies Limited Conversion to wood pellets for industrial heat process in Christchurch factory.

Residential
 Otago Regional Council Development of the Otago Warm Homes Clean Heat Clean Air project.

Transport
 Auckland International Airport Limited Development of an innovative workplace travel plan – “Lift” – for staff working at Auckland Airport.

Outstanding Contribution
 Professor C. Gerry Carrington (High Achievement) Department of Physics, University of Otago, Dunedin.

 Professor Ann Smith (High Achievement) General Manager – Technical, CarboNZero programme, Landcare Research, Lincoln.

Awards 2009 – Media Backgrounder

The 2009 Awards are presented to organisations and individuals that have successfully produced outstanding results in energy efficiency or renewable energy projects.

The Awards, open to all New Zealand organisations and individuals, celebrate progress towards a sustainable energy future for New Zealand by:

• Profiling the champions of energy efficiency and renewable energy
• Recognising achievements in using sustainable energy systems and skills
• Disseminating information on leading energy practice.

The awards are now in their 10th year. This year, the Awards will be presented at an early evening function in Auckland on Thursday 21st May.

The event will be jointly hosted by EECA and principal corporate sponsors – Shell NZ, Fujitsu General New Zealand and EcoInsulation – for invited guests.

About the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority

EECA is the organisation set up by the New Zealand Government to encourage, support and promote energy efficiency, energy conservation, and the use of renewable sources of energy.

EECA enables organisations to increase their domestic and international competitiveness by adopting energy efficiency and renewable energy practices. We work with businesses to identify the opportunities for energy management that are available to them and help them develop energy management action plans to make the most of these opportunities.

Good energy management has many benefits for businesses, including lower costs, increased productivity, reduced greenhouse gas emissions and a positive effect on the brand.

We have a particular interest in:

• Encouraging new or under-used technology that can make processes more efficient
• Projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and
• Developing the wood fuel industry.

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