February 2026
FAN Conference
A highly successful annual conference for the MBIE-funded programme Future Architecture of the Network (FAN) | Te Whatunga Hiko was held on 3 - 4 February 2026 in Wellington, New Zealand, and was hosted this year by Victoria University of Wellington. Project managed by EPECentre, University of Canterbury, the FAN programme continues to strengthen connections across research and industry, and the conference proved to be an intellectually stimulating and highly productive event for all involved as it showcased the outcome from the programme over the last year. The conference provided an outstanding platform for exploring the future of electrical power systems in the context of decarbonisation, electrification, and the transition toward hybrid AC/DC networks. The programme showcased cutting-edge research on DC grids, microgrids, power electronics, protection systems, and real-time simulation, bringing together both academic and industry perspectives on building efficient, resilient, and low-carbon energy systems. Presentations given by EPECentre Director Dr Hamish Avery (KPI overview) and Research Engineer Dr Josh Schipper (Workstream 1 update) were both well received, along with insightful keynote addresses, technical sessions, and workshop delivered by leading international and national experts.
2025
NOVEMBER 2025
Horizon Europe
Director Hamish Avery has been invited to join the MBIE February 2026 Horizon Europe delegation on the back of our success with the University of Lisbon’s Solar MOVE consortia.
NOVEMBER 2025
Aruhiko PEET Membership Growth
Amongst other increases in industry sponsorship over the last few years, we are delighted to report that the IEEE Power & Energy Society has joined the consortium of industry partners that fund Aruhiko PEET. IEEE is an international entity and the most respected electrical and electronic engineering community. This marks a significant step for us and connects our students with international opportunities. Recognition of the work of Aruhiko PEET by the IEEE is testament to the value we add to the student pathways, and our relationship with the local industry. Aruhiko PEET manager David Humm, working with the EPECentre industry contacts, has increased sponsorship by nearly $100k since his appointment in 2023, bringing the annual donations for the programme to nearly $400k annually. Aruhiko PEET was created to inspire and enable tomorrow’s power engineering talent by sharing responsibility, knowledge and opportunity across academia and industry. In practice, this translates to Aruhiko PEET being UC’s largest external funder of undergraduate scholarships, maintaining NZ’s only on-campus industry-funded student success organisation, and running a full programme of recruitment and industry lunchtime events, and multiple field trips per year that span the key industry partners nationwide.
OCTOBER 2025
Local community energy systems
EPECentre is delighted to be hosting a Masters student from ETH Zurich in early 2026, who will be looking at renewable energy options for Lyttelton, as part of ongoing work supporting Lyttelton with their energy transition. The work is expected to inform a business case for the development of special consideration for electricity lines charges within the community. This ongoing work is supported by Christchurch City Council, ECAN, Ara Ake, Orion, and the local community action group LETS, as well as our own interdisciplinary research team.
OCTOBER 2025
Adaption Futures 2025 Conference
EPECentre Director Hamish Avery and Operations Manager Rachel Hart, alongside several students, maintained the UC stand at the Adaption Futures 2025 conference alongside the Geospatial Research Institute. We were thrilled to be able to demonstrate the impacts of increasing renewable energy on our electrical system with a visceral paddling experience. A huge highlight was demonstrating to twice Canadian paddling representative and respected Stó:lo leader, Dr Gwen Point, and the high score coming from Liz Brown, Kaihautū Matua | Executive Director of our Office of Treaty Partnership.
OCTOBER 2025
Adaption Futures 2025 Living Labs
Hamish Avery was also an Adaption Futures 2025 Living Labs leader for a trip of 69 delegates to Ōnuku Marae near Akaroa. With four British Colombia First Nations Chiefs as part of the trip, it was a deeply moving experience to be part of the two indigenous peoples coming together, as well as a big personal step up in cultural competence. Whilst there, further energy use measurements were also conducted as part of ongoing work with Ōnuku on improving energy efficiency and resilience.
SEPTEMBER 2025
Canterbury Mayoral Forum Energy Strategy
Hamish Avery has been invited to participate in the development of the Canterbury Mayoral Forum Energy Strategy. EPECentre had a key oversight role in the preceded work, the Canterbury Mayoral Forum Energy Inventory. The initial workshop was in September with further work ongoing.
SEPTEMBER 2025
Selwyn District Energy Strategy
Hamish Avery was pleased to be invited to participate in the development of the Selwyn District Energy Strategy development. With many connections across the local and national energy landscape, and a deep understanding of the balance of energy resources and demand, EPECentre is well placed to provide impactful input in the energy strategy. The first kick off was in September, and we look forward to ongoing participation.
AUGUST 2025
Transpower Team Visit
The EPECentre was honoured by a visit of the entire Senior Leadership Team of Grid Operations from Transpower. This visit was to discuss our work on student gender and diversity, the talent pipeline from UC, explore enduring research opportunities and professional development courses, and to strengthen the link between our national grid operator and UC. We also had a tour of the facilities, including the High Voltage Lab, and met with many students on the way with a high level of engagement from the Transpower team and the students.
AUGUST 2025
Robinson Institute
As part of ongoing collaboration with the Robinson Institute, EPECentre hosted a delegation from Airbus Industrie (France), Tāwhaki National Aerospace Centre, and Robinson Institute to discuss ongoing collaboration, especially in the cryogenic power electronics field that EPECentre is working in.
AUGUST 2025
Ōnuku Marae
As part of an ongoing relationship with Ōnuku Marae, EPECentre’s Hamish Avery and Rachel Hart, along with Kaiārahi Māori Research, Tipene Merritt, met with the marae leadership to present findings on how the marae could best use energy for efficiency and resilience. We are honoured to be invited to continue this journey with Ōnuku through to implementation of some of the actions we have suggested.
JULY 2025
Waka-powered popcorn machine
EPECentre, in conjunction with the FAN project Vision Mātauranga lead Tipene Merritt were delighted to support Aukaha Tau 12. Summer intern Rose Bruning and Hamish Avery created Tipene’s vision for a waka that would produce energy in a system representing renewable electricity, complete with energy storage and an outcome worth rowing for – popcorn!
JULY 2025
SOLAR-MOVE, Horizon Europe Success
EPECentre is proud to be part of a successful Horizon Europe bid, SOLAR-MOVE, led from Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa. This project is investigating the potential for range extension of electric mobility through in-vehicle solar. This is worth around $600k over 3.5 years to UC, and will involve local trails, alongside work with PostNord in Scandinavia.
JULY 2025
TU Dresden Collaboration Visit
EPECentre is excited to have an international collaborator visiting for 4 weeks from TU Dresden (Germany). Ana Maria Blanco has joined us to perform measurements on the DC Demonstration home that we have built at UC to test the potential for DC in domestic housing as part of the Electrical and Computer Engineering led and MBIE-funded FAN project. This is a unique opportunity to deepen our collaboration with our partner programme, FEN, based at TU Dresden.
JULY 2025
Niloofar Rezaei
EPECentre PhD Candidate Niloofar Rezaei, working under the EPECentre MBIE-funded Food Imaging project led by Principal Research Engineer Dr Bill Heffernan, was singled out for recognition by IEEE Immediate Past President Thomas Coughlin and Esteemed Member John McDonald for her excellent presentation at IEEE TENSYMP25 held at UC.
JULY 2025
Power Systems Field Trip
EPECentre and the Aruhiko Power Engineering Excellence Trust is again running the annual Power Systems Field Trip – this is a four-day industry-funded tour of major electricity generators, consumers, and operators – alternating between the North and South Islands each year. This is a tribute to the value industry places on the talent coming from UC, with full funding of air travel, accommodation, transport and hospitality for around 25 of our students and four leaders.
February 2025
RWTH Aachen Delegation Visit
We were delighted to host a delegation of three Professors and two students from RWTH Aachen (Germany). Their visit was to discuss future collaboration with the FAN project, as well as to ideate on Horizon Europe projects with the EPECentre. We also took them on a tour of the Chapman Castle and a visit to Nexbe. We were also very pleased to run a combined workshop of the social aspects of the Energy Transition, with a large number of local industry participants and community groups, including Orion and the Lyttleton Energy Transition Society.
February 2025
Demonstration DC House - Electrified!
EPECentre and the ECE FAN project recently electrified the first demonstration DC home in Aotearoa – in a humble portable cabin on campus. This will be a testbed to quantify the efficiency (and consequent emissions reductions) gains that can be made by powering our homes with direct current in place of the standard 230V AC.
February 2025
Adjunct Colleagues
EPECentre is very pleased to renew the Adjunct Professor of Practice position for former Director, Radnya Mukhedkar, and to welcome two new Adjunct Fellows, Evie Trolove and Yuyin Kueh, both from local electricity distributor and collaborator, Orion.
February 2025
2nd Annual FAN Conference
The Future Architecture of the Network (FAN) MBIE SSIF programme held its 2nd annual conference in early February, hosted at the University of Auckland and Auckland University of Technology. With the full FAN team of researcher and students, industry partners, and international guests and speakers, this was hugely successful. We were especially pleased to see our funder, MBIE, in attendance as well.
February 2025
Summer Interns
We were very pleased to have 9 summer interns working at EPECentre on MBIE funded research projects – FAN and the Food Imaging Project. This is a great opportunity for students to experience life as a postgrad and we hope to see some of them stay on for further studies with us in the future!
Pre 2024
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EPECentre and Aruhiko PEET celebrate 20th anniversary
Over the past two decades EPECentre and Aruhiko PEET have brought together industry, researchers, academia and students to foster innovative research and ensure a pipeline of power engineering talent.
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EPECentre and Aruhiko PEET celebrate 20th anniversary
Over the past two decades EPECentre and Aruhiko PEET have brought together industry, researchers, academia and students to foster innovative research and ensure a pipeline of power engineering talent.
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EPECentre and Aruhiko PEET celebrate 20th anniversary
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Are microgrids the answer to reliable power in Kiwi homes?
A new study from University of Canterbury (UC) researchers, focusing on reliable energy generation, could be the key to recharging our communities.
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Are microgrids the answer to reliable power in Kiwi homes?
A new study from University of Canterbury (UC) researchers, focusing on reliable energy generation, could be the key to recharging our communities.
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Are microgrids the answer to reliable power in Kiwi homes?
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Engineering students given opportunity to go behind the scenes at NZ power industry sites
EPECentre and Aruhiko – PEET hosted 27 engineering students on the four-day South Island Power Systems Field Trip.
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Engineering students given opportunity to go behind the scenes at NZ power industry sites
EPECentre and Aruhiko – PEET hosted 27 engineering students on the four-day South Island Power Systems Field Trip.
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Engineering students given opportunity to go behind the scenes at NZ power industry sites
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How New Zealand can cut freight transport emissions
On The Conversation Research Engineer Patricio Gallardo writes how a shift to coastal shipping and rail could cut New Zealand’s freight transport emissions and asks why we are not doing it.
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How New Zealand can cut freight transport emissions
On The Conversation Research Engineer Patricio Gallardo writes how a shift to coastal shipping and rail could cut New Zealand’s freight transport emissions and asks why we are not doing it.
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How New Zealand can cut freight transport emissions
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Developing a resilient electrical grid for New Zealand
University of Canterbury Professor Neville Watson is two years into leading a seven-year project to integrate renewable energy into Aotearoa New Zealand’s century-old electrical grid.
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Developing a resilient electrical grid for New Zealand
University of Canterbury Professor Neville Watson is two years into leading a seven-year project to integrate renewable energy into Aotearoa New Zealand’s century-old electrical grid.
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Developing a resilient electrical grid for New Zealand
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Students aim for world speed record in custom-built electric car
In a New Zealand first, University of Canterbury Engineering students inspired by legendary Kiwi racer Burt Munro are taking on a world land-speed record in a rocket-shaped electric car they’ve designed and built.
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Students aim for world speed record in custom-built electric car
In a New Zealand first, University of Canterbury Engineering students inspired by legendary Kiwi racer Burt Munro are taking on a world land-speed record in a rocket-shaped electric car they’ve designed and built.
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Students aim for world speed record in custom-built electric car
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Scholars celebrated at annual Scholarship Awards
Students, staff and industry came together for the annual awards and the APEX Summit on 6 October 2022.
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Scholars celebrated at annual Scholarship Awards
Students, staff and industry came together for the annual awards and the APEX Summit on 6 October 2022.
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Scholars celebrated at annual Scholarship Awards
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Transitioning to solve the world’s engineering ‘mega-problems’
Emboldening engineers and others to think differently to solve wicked ‘unsolvable’ problems is the focus of the University of Canterbury’s two Transition Engineering micro-credentials supported by the EPECentre and Transition HQ.
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Transitioning to solve the world’s engineering ‘mega-problems’
Emboldening engineers and others to think differently to solve wicked ‘unsolvable’ problems is the focus of the University of Canterbury’s two Transition Engineering micro-credentials supported by the EPECentre and Transition HQ.
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Transitioning to solve the world’s engineering ‘mega-problems’
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MBIE funds $13m UC research to future-proof NZ electrical grid
University of Canterbury Engineering Professor Neville Watson is leading a seven-year project to ensure modern renewable energy can be integrated into the country’s century-old electrical grid to future-proof the power supply and benefit every New Zealander.
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MBIE funds $13m UC research to future-proof NZ electrical grid
University of Canterbury Engineering Professor Neville Watson is leading a seven-year project to ensure modern renewable energy can be integrated into the country’s century-old electrical grid to future-proof the power supply and benefit every New Zealander.
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MBIE funds $13m UC research to future-proof NZ electrical grid
