EEA conference 2022
Each year the Electricity Engineers’ Association hosts a conference to bring together all parts of the electricity supply industry to discuss trends, insights and technology.
This year’s theme of ‘Delivering a net zero carbon energy future’ saw this year’s speakers cover a range of perspectives on the challenges - and solutions - ahead for the electricity industry as Aotearoa New Zealand decarbonises.
You’ll find our team’s presentations below.
Delivering engineering capability for decarbonisation – Panel chaired by Michael Whaley
Meeting growing demand for electricity in Aotearoa New Zealand to enable decarbonisation requires a diverse, specialised and experienced workforce that’s larger than ever before argues Michael Whaley in this panel discussion on how to deliver the capability needed to meet current and future needs.
Identifying and bridging the ‘graduate engineer practical skills gap’ – Luke Mainwaring
Without enough engineers with practical skills the lights will go out. Luke Mainwaring's EMBA research survey found that only 36% of graduate electrical engineers felt they were prepared for the transition from university to the electricity supply industry. His solution? Practical training centres to provide hands-on experience.
The early collaborative and proactive behaviour required to enable utility-scale distributed generation connections to the distribution network – Georgin Raju and Kieran Kennedy (Mitton ElectroNet)
Large-scale distributed generation (DG) projects are increasing in Aoteroa New Zealand as customers seek to decarbonise. In this presentation Georgin and Kieran stress that early collaboration between developers, consultants, distribution companies and Transpower is key to delivering successful large scale DG projects.
Evaluation of performance and fire response of LV plastic pillar material – Andre Cuppen
Making electricity smart meter data available to electricity networks could help reduce underground cable pillar box fires by providing the voltage data that can show where they’re liable to overheat before an incident occurs. Andre Cuppen does a deep dive into the causes of pillar box fires and how to avoid them in this presentation.
Powerco’s Whangamatā Battery Energy Storage System – Functional use cases, system performance and operational experience – Gabriel Lim and Vijay Hirani
Who is BESS? Our innovative Battery Energy Storage System in Whangamatā was commissioned in 2019 to provide back-up supply during peak periods and when unplanned outages occur. In this presentation Gabriel and Vijay talk about what the Powerco team have learned operating BESS over the last three years.
Presenters
Michael Whaley
Chief Engineer
Luke Mainwaring
Design Engineer Manager
Georgin Raju
Planning Engineer
Kieran Kennedy
Engineer (Mitton ElectroNet)
Andre Cuppen
Asset Engineer
Gabriel Lim
Network Development Manager
Vijay Hirani
Planning Engineer