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Highlights
- Meridian Energy Limited has been granted resource consent for the construction of Aotearoa’s 100 MW grid-connected battery energy storage system
- Infratil Limited released interim results in November 2022
- Contact Energy produces around 80-85% of its electricity from renewable hydro and geothermal stations
Renewable energy is derived from natural sources, which have a higher rate of replenishment than the rate of consumption. Some of the most popular sources of y are: wind, sun, tides, biomass, hydro, etc. These provide a sustainable way of meeting energy demands and cause little or no environmental problems.
Let’s have a look at three ASX Renewable Energy Stocks and their performance in 2022.
Meridian Energy Limited (ASX:MEZ)
Meridian has become one of the largest 100% renewable energy generator in Australasia while moving in the direction of minimising climate risks and pollution. The company has several ongoing operations in Australia and New Zealand.
In November 2022, the company was granted resource consent for the construction of Aotearoa’s 100 MW grid-connected battery energy storage system at Ruakaka from the Whangarei District Council and the Northland Regional Council. The construction will start in 2023 and is likely to finish by 2024. It will be able to power 60,000 households for two hours on its fill charge capacity. Meridian will also construct a 125 MW solar farm in the Ruakaka Energy Park.
The company announced in October that it will bring seven large-scale renewable energy projects into operation near Aotearoa by 2030. The first of these will be the Harapaki wind farm in Hawke’s Bay. It is expected to start operating in 2023 and power 70,000 homes.
In its 2022 October operating report, Meridian highlighted that the national electricity demand was 3.1% higher compared to October 2021.
Meridian is also involved in the decarbonisation of the transport system by partnering with companies like Paddon Rally Group (EV Rally) and ElectricaAir (Electric helicopters) by launching a network of EV chargers throughout New Zealand.
Image Source: © Lovelyday12 | Megapixl.com
Infratil Limited (ASX:IFT)
New Zealand-based company Infratil Limited owns renewable energy, airports, digital infrastructure, and healthcare assets. It is operational in Australia, Asia, the US, Europe, and New Zealand.
The company released its interim results in November 2022, revealing that its EBITDAF (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, and fair value adjustments) for the period was US$40.7 million.
It committed capital to support Longroad Energy plans to develop 4.5 GW in next three years by reaching an agreement with MEAG to acquire a 12% stake in Longroad.
Infratil acquired a 31% interest in Valta Energy, which is a developer and operator of distributed solar generation.
Infratil is developing 1.3 GW across seven projects, of which four are under construction: Three Corners (150 MW), Pittsfield (7MW), Maine DG (26 MW) and Milford Wind (306 MW). The investment related decision is expected to be made this year for the remaining three projects: Sun Streams 3 (500 MW), Umbriel (200 MW) and Foxhound (108 MW).
The company also has a grid-scale project in Northland (12 MW). The decision on final investment will be made in the first half of next year.
Data source: ASX, as on 30 December 2022
Contact Energy Limited (ASX:CEN)
Contact Energy deals with electricity, LPG products, and natural gas. Currently, they have 11 hydro, geothermal and gas-fired power stations. It produces around 80-85% of the electricity from renewable hydro and geothermal stations.
It is currently building Tauhara Power Station with a capacity of 168 MW near Taupo, New Zealand.
The company recently announced its Integrated Report 2022. It produced 3,283 GWh of its electricity from geothermal stations, 3,940 GWh from hydro stations and 1,046GWh from thermal stations.
The company signed a Joint Venture with Meridian Energy to build the world’s first large-scale green hydrogen project in Bluff.
The company is also planning to complete the construction of the Tauhara geothermal power station and start operations in 2023. It will make the final investment decision on its next renewable projects by 2024.
It also announced a US$300 million investment to increase the renewable energy output from its Te Huka binary power cycle station.
Contact Energy has also signed two landowner access agreements for possible wind farms in Northland and Southland, which can generate 600 MW electricity. It has also signed a 50-50 joint venture with Lightsource bp to develop solar generation projects in New Zealand. Contact expects electricity generation to begin by 2024.
The company will close its Te Rapa power station next year to reduce annual carbon emissions by 200,000 tonnes per year.
