Trans-Tasman packaging giant Orora plans to slash the energy consumption of its New Zealand operations by 15 per cent after seeing the benefits in Australia.
The company will spend A$2m over three years optimising energy used for compressed air, warehouse lighting, and motorised systems, as well as reducing energy used in process and space heating. Orora says the programme is expected to save 11.8 GWh energy (6.7 GWh of electricity and 5.1 GWh of natural gas) and 1600 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year.
Orora NZ will spend $2m to cut energy use by 15 per cent.
This is equivalent to the annual energy use of about 1130 households and emissions of about 580 typical cars.
Nigel Garrard,, chief execcutiove at Orora, says energy efficiency forms a fundamental part of running a sustainable business and similar investments in Australia spurred the Kiwi initiative. He says, “We have already invested heavily in energy efficiency improvements in our Australian operations, and benchmarking our NZ operations against these have shown that there is potential to make significant energy savings in NZ too.”
He add that Orora’s experience in Australia showed that benefits beyond saving money include increasing output, improving working environments and greater engagement with staff.
The programme was developed with the EECA, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority. Its chief executive Mike Underhill says NZ firms could collectively save $1.6bn a year through technology upgrades and process-improvement.
Orora says its energy efficiency team is conducting energy audits of each New Zealand manufacturing plant to identify energy saving opportunities, both operational and technical.
The 700-staff company will introduce a training programme to improve energy efficiency procedures and awareness amongst staff.
