Powersmart Solar

Powersmart Solar is an international designer, supplier, and installer of solar power systems. They offer a full solar power design and project management service from small residential to large commercial customers, both on and off the grid.

Their main markets are currently Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. The company considers sustainability to be a core component of business success and aims for continuous improvement and investment in this area.

“The solar power industry is a tremendously exciting business with enormous prospects for innovation, growth and job creation. Powersmart's focus is completely on international markets with a keen eye to development in New Zealand, which has an excellent talent pool and geographic location for us, but currently lacks policy to support solar power adoption. Despite this, we are confident that by continuing to grow our business here and working with the government we can demonstrate the incredible value solar power systems can add to the New Zealand electricity infrastructure” says Mike Bassett-Smith.

For Powersmart Solar sustainability encompasses both their own internal business operations and the net effect of their products and services. As a company contributing directly to the development of a cleaner, more robust and reliable electricity grid they influence sustainability in many ways beyond their own operations. Nevertheless, the company maintains a keen focus on ensuring that the sustainability of their operations is considered as thoroughly as the affect of their product and service sales.

Powersmart Solar’s head office operates from a solar powered facility in Mount Maunganui. Their main solar panel supplier produces solar modules in line with the industry’s leading environmental credentials. Among other initiatives, the company is currently building electric cars for operations around the Bay of Plenty. Growth in the NZ business will facilitate further investments with the company currently looking at a new head office and production facility.

According to Powersmart the main challenge facing New Zealand’s solar power industry is the government’s lack of policy to enable or incentivise the adoption of solar power systems. Powersmart believe that key decision makers in New Zealand are misinformed about how solar power fits into New Zealand's electricity infrastructure and the costs/benefits of solar power investments. To join the nations currently investing in solar power and harnessing its many benefits, we must adopt metering and billing legislation, and properly quantify the impact of solar power on low voltage networks. Until this is done there will remain a significant legislative hurdle to growth in the NZ solar power industry, but Powersmart believes it will continue to prosper in regional markets such as Australia.