ANZCO accelerates decarbonisation journey

ANZCO Foods’ decarbonisation journey has been accelerated after receiving funding from the Government Investment in Decarbonisation Industry (GIDI) Fund.

The GIDI Fund is a partnership between Government and business to fast-track decarbonising industrial process heat, as well as contributing to the COVID-19 recovery by stimulating the economy and supporting employment.

ANZCO Foods has received part-funding to install a high-temperature heat pump to replace coal-fired boiler-generated hot water at its Canterbury site. 

“ANZCO Foods is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and the co-funding of ANZCO’s first high-temperature heat pump will help us speed up our decarbonising process,” says ANZCO Foods Chief Executive Peter Conley.

“Transitioning away from coal to electricity requires significant capital investment. The GIDI Funding has provided around a third of the total cost of the project which has allowed ANZCO Foods to bring forward this investment by four years. In addition, it will mean ANZCO can evaluate and install this technology across its other New Zealand operational sites earlier than initially planned.”

The new 1MW high-temperature heat pump on the beef refrigeration system will provide energy-efficient hot water generation for processing at the ANZCO Canterbury beef processing plant and replaces the need for coal-fired boiler-generated hot water.

The new high-temperature heat pump will reduce the emissions associated with the beef processing of plant hot water generation by 2,930 tCO2 a year, accounting for 13% of the site’s entire stationary emissions footprint and reduce coal use by 17%.

The new high-temperature heat pump will be installed by the end of this year and will be operating by January 2022.

“ANZCO Foods Canterbury is the company’s largest processing site with the biggest footprint, so it’s also the site where we can make the biggest impact,” says Peter.

“Earlier this year, our ANZCO Foods Canterbury site reinstated retired electric boilers resulting in a shift from coal to electricity.

“These two decarbonisation projects will see the site transition from coal to electricity, removing about 4200T of coal and 8,500T of carbon a year, with additional electricity usage of 15GWH,” he says.

“ANZCO Foods employs nearly 3,000 people in mainly rural New Zealand in its seven processing sites and two manufacturing operations. Decarbonising our sites will contribute to future-proofing our sites which helps secure regional employment which in turn also stimulates local economies.”