New Zealand’s future energy centre, Ara Ake, has welcomed the release of the Emissions Reduction Plan and the first tranche of investments from the Climate Emergency Response Fund (CERF).

Ara Ake Chief Executive Dr Cristiano Marantes says the Government’s plan will require us embracing new technologies and innovation.

“The ability to be agile and adaptable to new and emerging technologies will be crucial and I’m looking forward to Ara Ake playing a part in ensuring that happens,” Dr Marantes says.

“The initiatives outlined in the Emissions Reduction Plan offer enormous opportunities for us to benefit from a decarbonised future – from new jobs to long-term environmental, social, and economic benefits for our future generations.

“The only way we’ll achieve those benefits however, is in collaboration with businesses and streamlining our ability to adopt new ways of doing things.

“We see our role as connecting stakeholders and sharing knowledge from across the energy innovation landscape in the nation’s decarbonisation journey. We are excited that the Emissions Reduction Plan announces the development of a regulatory framework for offshore renewable energy, which was announced at the Offshore Future Energy Forum hosted by Ara Ake.

“We look forward to working through the detail of today’s announcements to see how we can work further with business and help demonstrate and commercialise new technologies,” Dr Marantes says.