“Our two organisations will work closely together over the next three years to develop a regional renewable heat hub, which will enable businesses and organisations to make use of renewable wood energy, sourced locally,” Mr Underhill said.

The hub was announced in May by the Minister of Energy and Resources Simon Bridges, with Government committing funding of $1.5 million over the three year life of the project, which aims to switch large users of fossil fuels such as coal to wood energy.

The Government is promising to introduce more certainty into the Southland wood energy market.
In an announcement last week , Energy and Resources Minister Simon Bridges said a ''renewable heat hub'' would be established in the province - a $1.5 million, three-year initiative designed to encourage the uptake of renewable energy, particularly by businesses.

The Government plan for a renewable heat hub in Southland is an exciting, albeit challenging prospect, Steve Canny of Venture Southland says.

Minister of Energy and Resources Simon Bridges announced the hub initiative yesterday, saying it was designed to increase the uptake of renewable energy.

In our view, wood energy has numerous benefits - economic, social and environmental. But like any fuel, there are pros and cons. If the sole criteria is fuel cost, then wood is unlikely to stack up against coal, which is almost always cheaper to buy. Looking at the bigger picture however, wood can be more cost-effective.

A Southland business is embracing innovative new technology in a project it says is "really important" for the region.

And it is warning other Southland businesses to do the same or die.

Slinkskins Ltd has just switched to a new woodchip boiler, the latest of several updates designed to make its factory more efficient.

The tanning company, based in Thornbury, prepares skins for international fashion houses.

Managing director Jonny Hazlett said the boiler would cut energy costs at the factory by several thousand dollars a year.

The project looks at viability of wood chips as an industrial fuel source.

Venture Southland and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) have partnered-up to establish Wood Energy South – the nation’s first regional renewable heat hub.

EECA is investing $1.5million into Wood Energy South, which will build capacity and create awareness about the viability of waste wood as a renewable industrial fuel source. Venture Southland will establish a cluster of wood energy use in commercial and industrial applications in Southland over the next three years.