Tēnā koe Genevieve

 

Thank you for your email dated 27/08/2021 requesting information about the
Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre.

 

Our team will manage your request under the Local Government Official
Information and Meetings Act 1987 which requires us to provide a decision
as soon as possible, but no later than 24/09/2021, being 20 working days
of receipt.

 

The reference number for your request is IRC-2309.

 

Please contact us if you have any further questions.

 

Kind regards

 

The Assurance Team

Email: [1][email address]

Wellington City Council | W [2]Wellington.govt.nz | [3]Facebook|
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-----Original Message-----
From: Genevieve Davidson <[FOI #16534 email]>
Sent: Friday, 27 August 2021 5:01 pm
To: BUS: Assurance <[email address]>
Subject: Official Information request - Information on the energy source
used for Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre

 

Tēnā koe Wellington City Council,

 

I am seeking information in relation to the energy source used to power
Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre ('Tākina').

 

Information for the purpose of this request includes but is not limited
to:

a) Data;

b) Internal memoranda;

c) Policy documents and practice notes;

d) Research;

e) Reports;

f) Email and letter correspondence;

g) File notes;

h) Aide memoires.

 

Could I please be sent information on the following:

 

1. Will Tākina use fossil fuels as part of its energy/heating system?

2. Will gas boilers be used as part of Tākina energy/heating system?

3. I understand Central Heating New Zealand Ltd  are supplying NME Group
Wellington with gas boilers to drive the Tākina energy/heating system, is
this correct?

4. Was there any consideration of Wellington City Council policy or
strategy for 'Energy Management and Strategy Plan-Gas Boiler Phase Out' in
relation for the energy sources for Tākina, if so could information
relating to this consideration be released?

5. Was there any consideration of 'Te Atakura' and Wellington City Council
'Sustainable Asset Policy' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina,
if so could information relating to this consideration be released?

6. Was there any consideration of MBIE's 'Building for Climate Change
policy' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

7. Was there any consideration of the recent Climate Change Commission (He
Pou a Rangi) Report/Advice 'Ināia tonu nei' and the IPCC '6th Assessment
Report' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

8. I understand the building concept design behind Tākina is to
invoke/summon the wind as powerful force in and identity of Te Whanganui a
Tara, were alternative sustainable/green energies such as wind power
considered in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

 

Ngā mihi,

 

Genevieve Davidson

 

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hide quoted sections

Good afternoon Genevieve,

Thank you for your email to the Council’s Complaints and Information
Assurance Team received on 27 August 2021 in which you were seeking
information in respect of Tâkina (Convention and Exhibition Centre).

Under section 13 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings
Act 1987 I can advise your request is granted and for no cost.

I am currently in the process of collating this information requested and
will endeavour to provide you with a full response by 1 October 2021.

Should you have any further questions please feel free to contact me.

Kind regards,

Ian.

Ian Hunter
Assurance Advisor | Assurance | Wellington City Council
P 04 803 8315 | M 021 227 8315
E [1][email address] | W [2]Wellington.govt.nz | [3]Facebook | [4]Twitter
The information contained in this email is privileged and confidential and
intended for the addressee only.
If you are not the intended recipient, you are asked to respect that
confidentiality and not disclose, copy or make use of its contents.
If received in error you are asked to destroy this email and contact the sender
immediately. Your assistance is appreciated.
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Dear Genevieve,

 

Thank you for your email to the Council received on 27 August 2021 in
which you asked a number of questions in respect of “…the energy source
used to power Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre
('Tākina').

 

The following overview of the project may provide some useful context in
respect of your questions.

 

Prior to the commencement of work on the site in August 2019, there had
been a number design stages, such as the Convention Centre and Film Museum
preliminary design in 2016, and the Preliminary Design update for the
Wellington Convention Centre and Exhibition Centre – Tākina in 2018.

 

Some of the key considerations in respect of the design of Tākina relate
to resilience, climate change, managing energy demand, and reducing
operational carbon emissions.

 

Resilience:

 

Tākina has been designed to very high standards of seismic resilience
which enables a return to business as usual as quickly as possible after
an emergency event. It is fully base isolated, which is the 'gold
standard' in low damage design. The internal diagrid structure limits
inter-story movement which is a major cause of fit-out damage. This design
is estimated to reduce significant structural damage by up to 10 times
that expected in a standard steel and concrete framed building.

 

Additionally, the ground floor sits 3.5m above sea level to ensure the
risk of surface water flooding entering the building has been mitigated.

 

Energy efficiency:

 

In 2016, to inform the early design process, Wellington City Council
engaged with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA), who
funded two studies through their energy efficiency advisory
service. Please find copies attached.

 

The objective of the EECA reports was to provide the Council with energy
efficiency advice which would allow the project team to make decisions
regarding the building envelope design and the
heating/ventilation/air-conditioning (HVAC) options at an early stage in
the design process. ECCA Programme 2A and 2B technical reports were
commissioned (attached).

 

EECA Programme 2A: Initial concept for a new building

 

This report reviewed the proposed plans and used thermal modelling of the
building envelope to identify potential energy saving opportunities
associated with the facade design. It also provided a payback period and
financial performance assessment of the energy efficient design options. 

 

EECA Programme 2B: Fit-out design and construction

 

This report provided further analysis of the baseline energy use of the
building, including identifying and estimating the variables and factors
that would affect the energy use baseline such as occupancy and operating
conditions etc.  The report also provided financial analysis of further
potential energy saving opportunities available to the project such as
improved HVAC plant and system efficiencies, and heat recovery devices.
Each opportunity was considered from an energy, Greenhouse Gas emissions
and energy cost perspective

 

The reports identified which options should be considered for inclusion
into the design, including:

 

o Optimising the building envelope and systems to minimise heating
requirements via:

o    double glazed and well-insulated thermal envelope

o    demand controlled ventilation systems

o    heat recovery from exhaust air

o    decentralised electric domestic hot water heating to remove
circulation heat losses (with back up from heating system).

 

o Electric Heat pump heating for shoulder seasons
o Remaining heating for peak loads via high efficiency gas boilers
(note: these also provide domestic hot water for the commercial
kitchens).

 

Electrical Network Capacity:

 

During the project related discussions with Wellington Electricity (WE) it
became apparent that the electrical utility network capacity in the area
around Tākina had insufficient capacity to accommodate the anticipated
diversified peak electrical load for the new building. WE indicated that
if the new building required the anticipated capacity, they would need to
significantly upgrade their network. This was not a situation that the
Council wanted to induce, so a review was undertaken to determine what
mitigation measures could be put in place that would reduce peak
electrical load.

 

As a result, the building is being equipped with systems and components
that will allow its peak electricity consumption to be managed within the
existing network capacity. These systems/components include:

 

o an active electrical load monitoring and shedding system which will
operate via the Building Management System (BMS)
o monitoring of the building post occupancy and during the first year of
operation to fine tune the automated systems to manage the building
load within the installed capacity without noticeable loss of building
performance
o provision of connection points for installation of a portable
temporary generator set for one-off large events
o the ability to install a Photovoltaic electricity generation system
([1]electricity-generating [2]solar panels) of up to 200kW capacity on
the roof.

 

NZGBC Green Star Certification:

 

Tākina’s design has been awarded a New Zealand Green Building Council 5
Green Star NZ Custom Tool Certified Rating, and upon completion, an
As-built rating will be sought. Operational energy and greenhouse gas
emissions modelling has been carried out as part of the Green Star
submission.

 

Features include:

o Enhanced thermal insulation and high-performance double glazing
o Rainwater harvesting system (30,000 litres) for toilet flushing and
evaporative cooling to reduce water consumption by 30 percent
o High efficiency LED lighting system and automatic controls for energy
savings
o Adaptable and demand-controlled air conditioning system reducing
energy use
o Predominantly heat pump heating to reduce reliance on fossil fuels
o The building is designed to operate efficiently at all levels of use,
from large conference events to smaller events
o Decentralised domestic hot water system to reduce energy when the
building is not in use
o Leading edge post occupancy energy optimisation systems to monitor and
fine tune energy usage
o Future proofed to accommodate on-site renewable energy generation via
roof mounted photovoltaic array
o Structural diagrid for building resiliency and reduced steel
requirements
o Environmentally preferable materials specification to provide improved
indoor air quality and reduced environmental impact
o Timber materials sourced from sustainable forestry
o Display screens located on the ground floor will communicate the green
credentials of the building, with visitors able to see real-time
building sustainability metrics such as water and energy consumption,
as well as carbon emissions
o Regeneration of a former carpark site into a civic amenity.

 

I will now address each of your questions in the order of your email.

 

1) Will Tākina use fossil fuels as part of its energy/heating system?

 

Tākina’s energy/heating system will use both electricity and gas. One of
the aims of the design has been to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and on
energy sources for heating generally.

 

2) Will gas boilers be used as part of Tākina energy/heating system?

 

The boilers will only be used for heating during peak loads, and are
primarily used to provide domestic hot water in the commercial kitchens.

 

3) I understand Central Heating New Zealand Ltd are supplying NME Group
Wellington with gas boilers to drive the Tākina energy/heating system, is
this correct?

 

Central Heating New Zealand Ltd has supplied the project with gas boilers
to provide hot water in the commercial kitchens and provide additional
heating at peak times. The gas boilers do not drive the Tākina
energy/heating system as this is led by the use of heat pumps which aim to
reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

 

4) Was there any consideration of Wellington City Council policy or
strategy for 'Energy Management and Strategy Plan-Gas Boiler Phase Out' in
relation for the energy sources for Tākina, if so could information
relating to this consideration be released?

 

The energy strategy for Tākina was extensive, incorporated a range of the
factors outlined above, and culminated in the design being awarded 5*
Green Star status.

 

Gas is a very small component of the overall energy strategy.  When the
gas boilers are at the end of their useful lives consideration will be
given based on any constraints at the time.

 

5) Was there any consideration of 'Te Atakura' and Wellington City Council
'Sustainable Asset Policy' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina,
if so could information relating to this consideration be released?

 

The Tākina design process included important factors that were later
adopted within Te Atakura, such as energy efficiency, reducing carbon
emissions and sustainable buildings. The design itself was finalised and
construction had commenced, prior to the adoption of Te Atakura.

 

6) Was there any consideration of MBIE's 'Building for Climate Change
policy' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

 

Again, the Tākina design had been finalised and construction commenced
prior to the announcement of the Building for Climate Change programme,
but it uses sustainable design features. Tākina is the first Conference
Centre in NZ to attain a sustainability rating attested by the 5* Green
Star certification.  As noted above, the building has been designed with
climate change and resilience at its heart incorporating features such as
grey water collection and re-use, raising the building against floods, and
energy efficiency.

 

7) Was there any consideration of the recent Climate Change Commission (He
Pou a Rangi) Report/Advice 'Ināia tonu nei' and the IPCC '6th Assessment
Report' in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

 

The Tākina design had been finalised and construction commenced prior to
the announcement of the Climate Change Commission (He Pou a Rangi)
Report/Advice 'Ināia tonu nei' and the IPCC '6th Assessment Report'.
However, Takina has subsequently achieved 5* Green Star certification.

 

8) I understand the building concept design behind Tākina is to
invoke/summon the wind as powerful force in and identity of Te Whanganui a
Tara, were alternative sustainable/green energies such as wind power
considered in relation to the energy sources for Tākina, if so could
information relating to this consideration be released?

 

The building has infrastructure in place so that on-site renewable energy
generation via a roof mounted photovoltaic array
([3]electricity-generating [4]solar panels) can be accommodated in the
future.

 

Kind regards,

Ian

 

Ian Hunter
Senior Advisor | Official Information Team | Wellington City Council
P 04 803 8315 | M 021 227 8315
E [5][email address] | W [6]Wellington.govt.nz 
The information contained in this email is privileged and confidential and
intended for the addressee only.
If you are not the intended recipient, you are asked to respect that
confidentiality and not disclose, copy or make use of its contents.
If received in error you are asked to destroy this email and contact the
sender immediately. Your assistance is appreciated.
[7][IMG]

 

 

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