The raw potential for alternative energy in New Zealand - including harnessing the tides of Otago Harbour - has captured the attention of an international energy consultancy firm in the United Kingdom.
IT Power - which has helped develop more than 1000 projects in 100 countries - has sent marine projects engineer Bob Shelmerdine to New Zealand to perform a six-month survey of potential projects.
The company specialises in the design, development, implementation and evaluation of renewable energy sources intended to help address climate change.
And, speaking to the Otago Daily Times from Auckland yesterday, Mr Shelmerdine confirmed Dunedin would be one of his first ports of call in New Zealand.
He planned to meet Dunedin man David Tucker, a semi-retired consultative engineer and tidal power advocate, in the next few weeks to discuss the possibilities for using tidal power within Otago Harbour as a green energy generation source.
The company was not intending to fund New Zealand projects itself, but wanted to act as a technical consultancy for any project that eventuated, he said.
That role could include seeking funding for initiatives from local authorities, central government or the private sector, he said.
"I'm here to open up the door ... because it's just an incredible opportunity in terms of the resource that you guys are sitting on - there's a very energetic climate down here."
Mr Tucker said he was "considerably" encouraged by the approach, and hoped the discussions could lead to a pre-feasibility study being carried out looking at the tidal potential of Otago Harbour.
That would depend on finding a financial backer for the initial work, he said.
"The key issue really now is someone has got to put some money up."
Mr Shelmerdine said representatives from the company's Marine Energy branch in the UK, and from the company's Australian office, both wanted to explore opportunities in New Zealand.
An initial reading of Otago Harbour's tidal flow suggested it might not be viable to build a tidal power generation scheme alone, he said.
However, that could change if the project also aimed to protect the city's harbourside developments from sea-level rise brought on by climate change, which could otherwise bring with it "huge" costs to the city, he said.
The company's interest follows Mr Tucker last year presenting his vision for a gated barrier crossing the harbour between Port Chalmers and Portobello, which could protect against sea-level rise and include turbines to generate electricity from tidal power.
His calls were renewed this January, as Auckland-based company Crest Energy progressed plans for a 200-turbine, 200MW scheme, costing about $600 million, at the entrance to Kaipara Harbour, north of Auckland.
Mr Shelmerdine said the idea of a power-generating barrier across Otago Harbour was similar to an engineering project the company was involved in developing to protect the Wash, a low-lying agricultural area of England.
It was also similar to other projects the company was pursuing in China, he said.
Mr Shelmerdine had planned trips to Wellington and Australia in the coming weeks, and aimed to provide a technical consultancy working with New Zealand-based partners in any projects that resulted, including in Dunedin.
"We're not sitting here and having a plan to put in a flood defence system for Dunedin.
"What I want to do is a piece of consultancy work whilst I'm over here that might initiate that project, because no-one's doing anything at the minute.
"It's an opportunity that we can use our skills on and maybe get something started."
