The goals of the Efficient Lighting Strategy provide the focus for the Commission’s interventions in the lighting market to improve the efficiency of lighting in New Zealand.

Information Programmes

RightLight

www.RightLight.govt.nz is a dedicated website to provide facts about energy efficient lighting, including information about available technologies and choice, electricity savings, safety, and design and application. Interactive tools allow consumers to evaluate the cost and potential electricity savings of energy efficient lighting in their homes and businesses. 

Accompanying the launch of RightLight.govt.nz is an advertising campaign to raise awareness of the website, and to encourage consumers to use the information that it provides. In addition the Commission has contracted a specialist training organisation to provide retail sales staff in electrical wholesalers, DIY stores and specialist lighting stores with information on energy efficient lighting that they can use to educate their customers.

Who is involved?

The programme is being led by the Electricity Commission in partnership with Consumer NZ, Lighting Council of New Zealand, Electrical Contractors Association of New Zealand, Green Building Council and EECA.

The programme has been developed in conjunction with, and has strong support from the lighting industry. The need for a credible core source of information on efficient lighting has been signalled by the industry for some time as being key to increasing uptake. The Commission acknowledges and is very grateful to the many lighting industry participants who have been involved in the scoping, design and development of the programme.

What are the programme objectives?

The Commission is projecting an additional 100 GWh of savings per annum from this information programme, achievable after 3 years, based on a conservative additional conversion of 5% of inefficient lamps to more efficient alternatives for each year of the programme. The programme will produce savings at a cost of less than 1c per kw/h. When compared to a long run marginal cost of 8.5c for new generation there is a compelling economic case for the programme.

Why did we undertake the programme?

To date the Commission’s funding has contributed to the installation of around five million efficient lamps which represents energy savings of around 400 GWh per year. The high up-front cost of many efficient lighting alternatives is undoubtedly a key barrier to uptake – and the Commission’s programmes to date have been successful in delivering a significant chunk of savings at an economic cost. However, it is becoming clear that a lack of accurate, reliable, complete and timely information also represents a significant barrier to uptake.

A lack of wider market awareness surrounding energy efficient lighting has been further amplified by market confusion/misinformation surrounding the Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) announcement on incandescent bulbs in 2008, issues regarding product use and suitability, technology benefits and limitations as well as the growing choice of efficient options available in the market.

Fundamental to the development of this project has been to develop an understanding of the key information barriers that are constraining the uptake of energy efficient lighting in New Zealand and identify options for the Electricity Commission to work with EECA and the lighting industry to address these barriers. 

The report “Energy Efficient Lighting in New Zealand - Information Barriers to Growth”, completed on behalf of the Commission by Anthony McLagan in October 2008, was based on qualitative research gathered through a series of meetings with representatives of businesses operating within different levels of the lighting industry as well as in associated organisations/sectors.  The market barriers identified in the report formed the basis for services requested via a competitive tender process in October and November 2008.

The survey report was published by the Commission in November 2008.

Programmes focused on reducing barriers to uptake of efficient lighting by way of price-based subsidies

The Commission is currently collaborating with a number of bulb manufacturers and distributors (as a result of the November 2008 and March 2009 Request for Proposals (RFPs) for Efficient Lighting CFL Subsidy Programmes) to offer a range of subsidised efficient lighting products.

A full list of subsidised products and the outlets they can be purchased from is available on the RightLight website for both consumers and businesses.

Efficient Road Lighting Programme

New Zealand’s 330,000 road lights operate for over 4,000 hours each year and cost councils and ratepayers over $30 million in annual energy consumption.  Advances in road lighting technologies have provided an increasing range of options for councils to improve the energy efficiency of their lighting networks while also improving the lighting efficacy. 

To help councils realise the savings and performance potential, the Commission has teamed up with the Christchurch City Council, Connetics, Lighting Management Consultants, New Zealand Transport Agency, Local Government New Zealand and NZ Institute of Highway Technology to develop a comprehensive online efficient road lighting resource.  Other organisations with specific expertise in road lighting and energy efficiency also played important roles in defining the requirements of the various road lighting calculators, information, templates and guidelines.  

The resource is designed to provide practical support to councils and related parties - assisting them to achieve their electricity efficiency objectives for existing lighting infrastructure while also ensuring new road lighting installations follow best practice guidelines for efficiency and performance.  

Energy efficient road lighting has multiple benefits beyond the obvious energy and maintenance cost savings. These benefits include appropriate lighting levels and visibility which can lessen the need for additional security lighting as well as greater community safety through improved visibility and a reduction in crime.  The greater security that people feel from improved visibility flows through to social and economic benefits.

The road lighting initiative is part of the wider RightLight efficient lighting programme that is set to save over 100GWh/annum after three years – equating to over $23m of savings per annum.  The online road lighting resource is available at www.rightlight.govt.nz/roadlighting

Other Lighting Projects

As a result of the November 2008 Efficient Lighting RFP, the Commission is also running three other lighting projects aimed at increasing the uptake of efficient lighting in both residential and commercial sectors across New Zealand.

Hennessey Group Limited

The Commission is collaborating with Hennessey Group Limited to encourage the uptake of efficient lighting technologies in industrial sites throughout New Zealand.

Hennessey will conduct lighting assessments of the current technology used in each site, and will produce a detailed ‘Lighting Efficiency Assessment' of recommended electricity saving measures to be implemented in order to achieve efficiency gains.
 
To be eligible to participate in this project, a site must have the potential to deliver 48,000 kWh savings.

Gartner Superlux Limited

The Commission is collaborating with Gartner Superlux Limited to subsidise the installation of efficient lighting in new-build homes across New Zealand. The Commission is subsidising a wide variety of Superlux products, with the aim that they are installed in place of inefficient technologies. The subsidised products will be available through a number of volume home builders in New Zealand.

Jenian Homes

Jennian Services Ltd (Jennian) is proceeding with a project in collaboration with the Commission to ensure new Jennian and Milestone homes are installed solely with efficient lighting fixtures and lamps.  

Jennian and Milestone will change all of their standard lighting plans (about 160 in total) to ensure efficient lighting is built into all new homes over the next 5 years.