Architects & engineers perceptions of geothermal energy

125 Pages·2014·1.15 MB·English

by  F. J. Coyle

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCE

Coyle, F. J. 2014. Architects, Engineers and Energy Managers’ Perceptions of

Low Temperature Geothermal and Biomass Energy Technologies: Barriers to
uptake and their potential solutions, GNS Science Report 2014/12. 116 p.

F. J. Coyle, GNS Science, 1 Fairway Drive, Avalon, Lower Hutt, 5010

© Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited, 2014
ISSN 1177-2425
ISBN 978-1-927278-35-2
CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................... V
KEYWORDS ........................................................................................................................ VI
1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1
1.1 BACKGROUND .................................................................................................. 1
1.2 THE PROJECT .................................................................................................. 2
1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................ 3
2.0 RESEARCH METHOD ............................................................................................... 5
2.1 RECRUITMENT ................................................................................................. 5
2.2 STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF THE FOCUS GROUPS ........................................... 6
2.2.1 Decision-making about heating and cooling systems .................................... 6
2.2.2 Terminology .................................................................................................... 6
2.2.3 Presentations .................................................................................................. 7
2.2.4 Marketing ........................................................................................................ 7
2.2.5 Regulations ..................................................................................................... 7
2.2.6 Individual and aggregated district heating systems ....................................... 7
2.2.7 Recommendations.......................................................................................... 7
2.3 DATA ANALYSIS ............................................................................................... 8
2.4 RESULTS ......................................................................................................... 8
3.0 PARTICIPANT EXPERIENCE AND AWARENESS.................................................... 9
3.1 AWARENESS ABOUT BIOMASS ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES ....................................... 9
3.2 AWARENESS ABOUT GEOTHERMAL ENERGY, LTG AND GEOTHERMAL HEAT
PUMPS ...........................................................................................................10
4.0 BARRIERS TO UPTAKE .......................................................................................... 15
4.1 CULTURAL FACTORS .......................................................................................15
4.1.1 New Zealand is different from the rest of the world ...................................... 15
4.1.2 Cold House Culture ...................................................................................... 17
4.1.3 Rumours ....................................................................................................... 18
4.1.4 Bad press: high profile disasters .................................................................. 20
4.1.5 Keeping up with the Joneses ....................................................................... 21
4.2 ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ..............................................................................21
4.2.1 Availability of Land........................................................................................ 21
4.2.2 Lack of suitable climate zones ..................................................................... 22
4.2.3 Seismicity ..................................................................................................... 23
4.2.4 Perceived difficulties of investigation and installation (geothermal) ............. 26
4.2.5 Aesthetic appeal ........................................................................................... 28
4.2.6 Environmental awareness ............................................................................ 29
4.2.7 Renewability of resource .............................................................................. 31
4.3 INDUSTRY FACTORS ........................................................................................32
4.3.1 Cowboys ....................................................................................................... 32

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4.3.2 Mis-communication....................................................................................... 36
4.3.3 Current Marketing Techniques ..................................................................... 37
4.3.4 ‘Dirty tricks’ ................................................................................................... 37
4.3.5 Lack of local expertise .................................................................................. 39
4.3.6 Lack of a critical mass of clients ................................................................... 39
4.3.7 Overseas manufacturers: a slippery interface .............................................. 40
4.4 ECONOMIC FACTORS .......................................................................................42
4.4.1 Up-front Capital Costs .................................................................................. 42
4.4.2 Security of Supply......................................................................................... 44
4.4.3 Competition from other resources ................................................................ 45
4.4.4 Limited subsidisation .................................................................................... 45
4.4.5 Property ownership....................................................................................... 46
4.5 INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS .................................................................................48
4.5.1 Institutional practices .................................................................................... 48
4.5.2 Legislative barriers ....................................................................................... 49
4.5.3 Lack of government lead .............................................................................. 51
4.6 TECHNOLOGY FACTORS ..................................................................................53
4.6.1 Maintenance of Equipment ........................................................................... 53
4.6.2 Ease of use ................................................................................................... 55
4.6.3 NZ proven examples and retrofits ................................................................ 55
5.0 BARRIERS FOR DISTRICT HEATING SCHEMES .................................................. 57
5.1 LACK OF POPULATION DENSITY ........................................................................58
5.2 UNSUITABLE CLIMATE ......................................................................................58
5.3 UNFAIR PRACTICES .........................................................................................58
5.4 COMMERCIAL STRUCTURE ...............................................................................59
5.5 CONSUMER CHOICE .........................................................................................60
5.6 SECURITY OF SUPPLY ......................................................................................60
6.0 DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES .......................................................................... 63
6.1 BUILDING ........................................................................................................63
6.2 CLIENT PROFILE ..............................................................................................63
6.3 COMPARING OPTIONS .....................................................................................65
6.4 CURRENT CONTEXT ........................................................................................66
6.5 FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS ............................................................................66
6.6 GEOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................66
6.7 INDIVIDUAL TECHNOLOGIES .............................................................................67
6.8 VALUE DECISION .............................................................................................67
7.0 POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS ........................................................................................ 69
7.1 INFORMATION, EDUCATION AND TRAINING .........................................................70
7.2 MORE RETROFITS ...........................................................................................73
7.3 IMPROVE INTER-PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION ..............................................74
7.4 CLIENT LEADERSHIP ........................................................................................75
7.5 GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP ..............................................................................76
7.6 GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIES.................................................................................77

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7.7 SIMPLIFICATION ...............................................................................................78
7.8 TARGETING CLIENTS ........................................................................................79
7.8.1 Low temperature geothermal/GHPs ............................................................. 80
7.8.2 Biomass energy ............................................................................................ 80
7.9 MARKETING ....................................................................................................82
7.9.1 Media advertising ......................................................................................... 83
7.9.2 Targeted marketing ...................................................................................... 83
7.9.3 Green message ............................................................................................ 84
7.9.4 Concrete evidence........................................................................................ 85
7.9.5 Intelligent systems ........................................................................................ 85
7.9.6 Local resources ............................................................................................ 85
7.9.7 Security of supply ......................................................................................... 86
7.9.8 Personal Stories ........................................................................................... 86
7.9.9 Take time to educate the client .................................................................... 86
7.9.10 Comfort ......................................................................................................... 86
7.9.11 Meaningful for the client ............................................................................... 87
7.9.12 Marketing GHPs ........................................................................................... 87
7.9.13 Marketing biomass ....................................................................................... 88
8.0 SUMMARY ............................................................................................................... 91
8.1 NEW ZEALAND’S GEOGRAPHY ..........................................................................92
8.2 ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS .................................................................................92
8.3 ECONOMIC NORMS ..........................................................................................92
8.4 INSTITUTIONAL CONSIDERATIONS .....................................................................93
8.5 COMMUNICATIONS...........................................................................................94
8.6 IMPLICATIONS .................................................................................................95
8.7 FUTURE RESEARCH NEEDS ..............................................................................95
9.0 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................... 97
10.0 REFERENCES ......................................................................................................... 97

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FIGURES
Figure 1 Barriers to the uptake of low temperature geothermal and biomass energy technologies. ........ 16
Figure 2 New Zealand climate zones ....................................................................................................... 23
Figure 3 Decision-making diagram for engineers, architects and energy managers. ............................... 64
Figure 4 Potential solutions to increase the uptake of low temperature geothermal and biomass
energy technologies in New Zealand. ........................................................................................ 69

TABLES
Table 1 Participant experience with Low Temperature Geothermal/Geothermal Heat Pumps and
Biomass technologies .................................................................................................................. 9

APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH .............................................................. 103
APPENDIX 2: FOCUS GROUP GUIDE ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS ....................... 105
APPENDIX 3: ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS AND ENERGY/FACILITIES MANAGERS
PERCEPTIONS OF NEW ZEALAND’S LOW-TEMPERATURE GEOTHERMAL
RESOURCES .................................................................................................................... 109
APPENDIX 4: FOCUS GROUP QUESTIONNAIRE ........................................................... 111
APPENDIX 5: INTERVIEW GUIDE – ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS AND ENERGY
MANAGERS ...................................................................................................................... 113

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This study utilised a focus group technique to explore architects, engineers and energy
managers’ perceptions of low temperature geothermal (LTG) and biomass energy
technologies. More specifically, the emphasis was on how they made decisions about
heating and cooling systems, what they saw as barriers to uptake and solutions they
identified, with the goal of expanding the New Zealand market for these technologies.
Research participants overwhelmingly perceived New Zealand to be economically,
geographically, socially, climatically and culturally different from the rest of the world.
Consequently, they placed an emphasis on the need for new innovations to be New Zealand
proven. In practice, this perception of difference coloured participant responses, and
discussions were contextualised by references to a complex, socio-technical national
landscape.
There were some misconceptions about the range of temperatures encompassed by the
direct use of geothermal energy. Moreover, the term Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP)
was deemed a more accurate and marketable term than Geothermal Heat Pump (GHP). In
comparison, there was more clarity about what compromised the range of biomass energy
technologies/resources, their renewability and how they differed from fossil fuels. In sum, the
names of new heating and cooling technologies must put out a clear, simple and
comprehensible message to potential customers.
Heating and cooling professionals advocated for the installation of accessible and viewable
retrofits to prove that the technology can work in the New Zealand context, even though they
were accepted in Europe and North America. Alternately, the country was not seen as a
suitable location for District/Aggregated Heating Systems, although their merit could be
understood in overseas contexts. However, participants recognised that an increasing
number of potential customers had either migrated from overseas or were returning from
living overseas, with higher comfort level expectations and a willingness to spend more
money on effective heating and cooling systems.
Within the heating and cooling industry, there was a general risk aversion to new
technologies and high capital costs, with the favouring of a standard cookie-cutter approach
to outfitting buildings. Participants did not think that the current emphasis on a (highly
competitive) free-market economy would allow for the incorporation of innovative, renewable
technologies, without the deliberate subsidisation/taxation of polluting systems. More locally,
the potential for new technologies during the Christchurch rebuild was sullied by the need for
immediate re-investment of fixed price insurance pay outs and commercial pressure to get
back to business as quickly as possible.
There was some concern over the impact on the reputation of heating and cooling
technologies when client’s encounter ‘cowboy’ companies, and the role that social media and
word-of-mouth played in propagating rumours. Participants outlined a number of marketing
strategies that focused on the relationship between the technologies and clients. Moreover,
based on these discussions, it appears that communication between different tradespeople
and between engineers and energy managers needs to be purposefully fostered and
encouraged, particularly in terms of follow-up and feedback on the performance of an
installed system.

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Education on life cycle costs was thought to be essential for both clients and financial lenders
alike. Furthermore, specific training on the technologies was requested within engineering
degrees, as well as separate qualifications for each technology in order to certify
professionals and to disenfranchise ‘cowboys’. National seminars, led by experts, were
encouraged by participants, and these should be used to present realistic case studies,
alongside supporting facts and statistics on the performance of a system.
KEYWORDS
Low temperature geothermal energy; geothermal heat pumps; ground source heat pumps;
biomass; focus groups; interviews; qualitative research; engineers; architects; energy
managers; facilities managers; heating and cooling technologies.

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1.0 INTRODUCTION
In order to address climate change and maximise energy efficiency, a variety of international
measures have been employed, including renewable energy technologies such as wind,
wave and hydro power, and maximising the insulation in buildings to prevent energy
wastage. Less frequently, geothermal and biomass energy technologies have also been
utilised, particularly in Northern Europe/Iceland (geothermal), North America and Asia
(traditional biomass), to heat and cool homes, businesses and other enterprises (Van
Heekeren et al., 2005). Their relative success in differing international contexts has been
mixed, due to a complex and intertwined array of factors that, historically, have acted as
barriers or enablers to their uptake in what Bridge et al., (2013) have termed, an energy
landscape.
1.1 BACKGROUND
Barriers to renewable energy technologies and ’green buildings’, in general, as well as low
temperature geothermal (LTG) and biomass energy have been recorded in the international
literature (Astmarsson et al., 2013; Balta-Ozkan, 2013; Berardi, 2013; Brown, 2001; Cooke
et al., 2007; Fiorese et al., 2014; Hoffman and Henn, 2008; McKormick and Kaberger, 2007;
MED, 2010; Richards et al., 2012; Rosch and Kaltschmitt, 1999; Ryghaug and Sorensen,
2009; Sovacool, 2013; Tsoutsos and Stamboulis, 2005; Uddin et al., 2010; Unruh, 2000;
Verbruggen et al., 2010; Zhang and Wang, 2013). They include:
• Legal barriers (inadequate frameworks, processes and design standards)
• Economic barriers (lack of financial support and subsidisation, high upfront costs,
investment in improving dominant technologies)
• Market barriers (competitive market, incomplete market for energy efficiency, lack of
momentum, lack of consumer awareness)
• Social barriers (little media attention, lifestyle, cultural, behavioural and aesthetic
norms)
• Institutional barriers (existing skill sets, risk aversion, inflexibility of existing
infrastructure)
• Technological barriers (technological immaturity, training to support technologies,
security of supply)
• Legislative barriers (inadequate policies, non-specific policies, ability to monitor
uptake/implementation of legislation)
There are international similarities between these barriers but their specificity and complex
interactions are tailored to a specific national context and cannot be directly extrapolated into
another.
Whilst much of the literature has focused on barriers to uptake, the reportage has been
solution-focused. Namely, these hurdles are not viewed as insurmountable, and can be
approached through a variety of measures. For instance, Hoffman and Henn (2008: 410–
414) concluded that some of these barriers, notably, institutional and organisational barriers,
can be overcome by a variety of changes to existing perceptions and cognitions, procedures
and routines. Specifically, this involves: issue framing, targeting the right demographic,
education, structural and incentive change, indemnifying risk, green building standard
improvements and tax reform. Successful legislative initiatives have pivoted around national

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and regional policy changes, some of which have been successful at eliminating or
compensating for barriers posed by a saturated, competitive market (Brown, 2001: 1206;
Wustenhagen and Bilharz, 2006).
Yet, still, other researchers suggest that in order to overcome some of the more engrained
social and cultural norms, a paradigm shift in thinking about energy is required; from large-
scale to small-scale initiatives, from finite stocks to renewable flows of energy; from
centralised to de-centralised; from large/global to small/local and from an energy monopoly
to liberalised energy (Elliott, 2000: 265). However, in reality, the current status-quo is re-
produced by vested interests and an entrenched physical and institutional infrastructure,
which make a complete paradigm shift in favour of renewable energy technologies an
unrealistic expectation, for the time being (Elliott, 2000: 266).
1.2 THE PROJECT
Whilst high temperature geothermal energy in New Zealand is widely recognised, in the very
visible form of power stations, less emphasis has been placed on the direct use of ‘low
temperature’ geothermal (LTG) energy. This is generally defined as energy produced at
temperatures ranging from ambient conditions to <150°C. At moderate temperatures (40–
150°C), this energy is harnessed via its direct use in space heating, heating greenhouses
and bathing. At lower temperatures (<40°C), the ambient ground temperature can be utilised
via Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHPs) or their pseudonym, Geothermal Heat Pumps
(GHPs), also known as geo-exchange systems.
Biomass energy (bioenergy) is defined by EECA as: “an important form of renewable energy
that is stored in biological material like wood, wood waste, manure, straw, and other by-
products of agricultural processes. Bioenergy in these sources can be converted and used to
generate heat or electricity, or to produce transport fuel” (EECA, 2013).
For heating and cooling, the New Zealand context is dominated by the abundance of high
temperature (>200°C) geothermal energy use, hydro-electricity, fossil fuels (predominantly
coal) and in North Island, cheap natural gas. In combination with a moderate climate, uptake
of LTG has been spartan; biomass energy technologies have been utilised in the southern
part of South Island, but on a sporadic level. With a solid international reputation, there is
significant potential to increase their uptake in New Zealand, and a thorough investigation of
the psychological, social, cultural, political and economic climate can provide valuable
information to foster this process (see CSE, 2012). An earlier GNS Science study (Doody
and Becker, 2010) on householders heating and cooling preferences found that
householders relied on the triangulation of specific information packages with other relevant
sources, including discussions with family and friends.
One of the recommendations from Doody and Becker (2010) was that since builders,
architects, developers and residential planners are in a position to encourage the adoption of
low temperature geothermal and biomass energy, efforts should be made to raise their
awareness of the technologies and the opportunities they afford. Moreover, since it is
architects and engineers who provide recommendations to potential domestic, commercial
and industrial customers, part of the goal of this current study was to find out what these
groups perceived to be barriers to the uptake of these technologies. Since energy and
facilities managers hold the ‘purse strings’, simultaneously finding out how this group make
decisions about these technologies and recommendations was deemed to be a worthwhile
exercise.

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