10 | T T to page 12 NZ Wineries T T Kim Newth Premiumwinemaker goes solar It is a win-win for New Zealand Wineries, driving sustainability while saving money on energy needed for wine processing. “The solar panels are generating about 440kW in total – that’s quite a lot of power – and it will be the cheapest electricity that we purchase,” REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT It is no coincidence that New Zealand’s largest wine region is also the sunniest in the country, and New Zealand Wineries is taking full advantage of Marlborough’s high sunshine hours at its original Liverpool St Winery, where solar panels have recently been installed across the winery’s vast corrugated roof area. New Zealand Wineries is a dynamic, fast-growing wine-processing company with wineries in both Marlborough and Waipara in North Canterbury, providing tailored wine-making services for premium New Zealand and international wine producers. At the heart of their craft from the outset, the company’s original site, the Liverpool St Winery, has evolved through the years to keep pace with their own high winemaking standards. With a direct link from the winery to the bottling lines at WineWorks, the entire process from wine to bottle is smooth and seamless. The idea of using their winery roof as a platform for an exciting green-energy project grew out of a wine industry trade show in Marlborough last year. “We got talking to Green Peak Energy, one of the exhibitors at the show, and it went from there,” explains New Zealand Wineries chief operating officer Alistair McIntosh. “The way it works is Green Peak Energy install and own the solar infrastructure, and we buy all the power that’s generated. If there’s any surplus, it gets sold back to the grid.” It is a win-win for New Zealand Wineries, driving sustainability while saving money on energy needed for wine processing. “We have the highest sunshine hours in New Zealand, so to us this made so much sense, particularly given the way power prices are going.” Winery Engineering manager Steven Ginders says the completed installation is now fully online and meeting around a third of the winery’s power requirements. “The solar panels are generating about 440kW in total – that’s quite a lot of power – and it will be the cheapest electricity that we purchase,” says Steven. This latest development follows hot on the heels of a major expansion at New Zealand Wineries’ industry-leading Kendrick Rd Winery, built in 2022. Another processing stream has been installed, adding another bin, two new presses and a new flotation unit. The expansion also boasts many automation features. “We doubled our capacity in time for vintage 2024. In total, we processed around 14,000 tonnes last year compared to 7000 in 2023,” says Alistair. Specialist, state-of-the-art filtration systems (Omnia Technologies/Della Tofolla) were selected to support this expansion. Many local ancillary suppliers and contractors were also involved, including Hydramech (mechanical services), eCAD (automated electrical control systems) and Boyd Wilson Electrical (electrical solutions, automation). Blenheim-based The Metal Company provided stainless steel components for the winery’s continuous N2 flotation room. Vitis & Winemakers, which has been operating in Marlborough for over 30 years, is another local specialist that has long been focused on meeting the equipment and engineering requirements of winemakers in the region. That includes providing essential parts and on-call service support to their customers. As the region has transitioned through the years from small-batch production to largescale winery production, so too has the quality of wine risen to match market expectations – Vitis has a long and proud role in that story, says Vitis & Winemakers managing director Paul Baggio.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=