18 | “We want to utilise the potential in biogas created by our wastewater at our Gisborne plant to create usable energy via methane capture technology, which is not commonly used in the New Zealand meat industry.” to page 20 Gisborne: Ovation New Zealand REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Creating energy fromwastewater Richard Loader Capturing biogas from wastewater from its Gisborne plant, Ovation NZ plans to use it to generate the bulk of the site’s energy to heat water, reducing the use of natural gas. Ovation New Zealand is currently constructing a $4 million wastewater upgrade that will deliver additional solutions that are sustainable and future proofed at its Gisborne sheep processing plant. Nicola McHaffie, Ovation’s Group Sustainability Manager says Ovation New Zealand is creating usable energy from wastewater at its Gisborne processing plant through co-funding from the Government Investment in Decarbonising Industry (GIDI) Fund, administered by EECA (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority). “Ovation is looking into ways to create a circular economy with the waste streams from our business. “We want to utilise the potential in biogas created by our wastewater at our Gisborne plant to create usable energy via methane capture technology, which is not commonly used in the New Zealand meat industry. “This project gives us an opportunity to lead in this space at scale and continue to act beyond the minimum standard required of us. Later down the track we will be looking at having a quality of discharge that is suitable for irrigation on adjacent farmland. We’re very proud of this investment, and keen to demonstrate that we’re showing leadership in the environmental area.” Wastewater and its associated biogas are usually a by-product and a source of carbon emissions in the meat processing industry. A biogas and biomethane report from BECA estimates that New Zealand’s wastewater from the meat industry has a potential of 700 Tera Joules of energy — equivalent to 10% of New Zealand’s residential natural gas use. Ovation will be tapping into this source of energy for its water heating needs. “The project links into the existing wastewater treatment upgrades to an Anaerobic Digestion Pond system,” explains Nicola. “It will capture the biogas generated by the pond and use it to generate the bulk of the site’s energy to heat water. “Currently water is heated in boilers powered by natural gas. Process heat accounts for over a quarter of New Zealand’s overall energy emissions each year and with this project Ovation will be reducing a portion of our contributing emissions.” “Sustainability is important to Ovation and is a key pillar in our strategy. The utilisation of biogas at Gisborne will reduce our carbon footprint by 9000 tonnes over the next 20 years by reducing the use of natural gas. Combined with the work our suppliers are undertaking on their farms to know their greenhouse gas numbers, this is a great example of the actions needed to contribute towards keeping global warming under 2 degrees.” The biogas project makes Gisborne a flagship site of renewables for the other Hawke’s Bay Meat Company subsidiaries to follow. Using the knowledge and relationships developed under those projects, Ovation can look to do similar work at other sites. Ovation New Zealand is an integrated lamb sourcing, slaughter, processing and exporting business, delivering the world’s best-quality lamb to customers across the globe. Wholly New Zealand privately owned and operated Ovation New Zealand operates three sites across the North Island including Gisborne, Feilding and Te Kuiti Meat Processors. The Gisborne plant has been operating since 1998, and is one of the largest employers in the Gisborne area with a workforce of 175 staff employed year round with a further 150 plus employed on a seasonal basis. The plant’s catchment area is northern Hawkes Bay, Poverty Bay, East Cape. The plant produces approximately 15,000 MT of sheepmeat per year plus associated by-products including offals, pelts, rendering, petfood and casings.
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