German–Cook Islands Partnership

Michael Welzel, Director of ICTnexus and Power Edge representative for New Zealand and the Pacific Islands (left), with Noel Johnston, Director of Power Edge Engineering, Australia (right), at the Oceania Renewable Power Summit in Auckland.

On 7 and 8 October 2026, the energy sector of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific met at the Pullman Auckland Hotel for the Oceania Renewable Power Summit. Developers, network operators, investors, regulators and Pacific utilities came together for two days of talks on solar, wind and battery storage.

Power Edge Engineering was there in force. Noel Johnston, CEO of Power Edge Engineering in Australia, travelled to Auckland. He was joined by Michael Welzel, Director of ICTnexus and Power Edge's representative for New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Their goal was to meet utilities, project developers and businesses across the region, and to introduce Power Edge's Sustainable Island Solutions. ICTnexus is the Pacific Islands integration and delivery partner of Power Edge Engineering.

A Summit Focused on Delivery

This year's theme was turning renewable ambition into projects that are built and running. The programme covered construction and supply chains, grid and market integration, storage economics, financing and policy. On day two, separate streams ran for Australia and New Zealand and for Pacific Island markets.

The opening "State of Play in Oceania" session described the Pacific's fast move toward microgrids and programmes to replace diesel generation (Summit programme). New Zealand's Minister for Energy, Hon Simeon Brown, and Samoa's Deputy Prime Minister, Hon Mulipola Anarosa Ale Molio'o, spoke on a ministerial panel. They discussed how the region can speed up renewable deployment while keeping energy affordable and resilient (Oceania Renewable Power Summit).

For Power Edge, these are exactly the challenges its Sustainable Island Solutions were designed for.

What Are Sustainable Island Solutions?

Island and remote grids are different from large national networks. They are small and often run on diesel, so they have little inertia to absorb sudden changes. As more solar is connected, keeping frequency and voltage stable becomes the limiting factor. Supply chains are long and spare parts are often far away. Customers such as resorts, hospitals, airports and government facilities cannot afford outages.

Sustainable Island Solutions bring together everything an island or remote site needs to move from diesel to reliable renewable power:

1. Power Generation

Hybrid solar, battery storage and generator systems, from small commercial sites up to utility scale. At the core is PowerEdge MAX, a turnkey hybrid microgrid system. It combines a bidirectional inverter, harmonic filter, isolation transformer, switchboard and microgrid controller in one engineered package. It works grid-connected or fully off-grid, switches seamlessly to island mode during outages, and is built from standard parts that a qualified local electrician can service.

2. Monitoring and Control

Real-time monitoring and remote access for every source and load on site: solar, batteries, generators, EV chargers and critical circuits. Operators can see performance, track fuel savings and emissions, and respond to faults before they become outages.

3. Power Quality and Grid Monitoring for Utilities

Power Edge's chartered electrical engineers have extensive experience in protection studies, harmonic analysis and Class A power quality measurement. For Pacific and New Zealand utilities, this means accurate data on voltage, frequency and harmonics. That data supports more renewables, better asset management and compliance with grid codes.

4. Energy Management, Building Automation and Load Control

For the hospitality industry, commercial buildings and government facilities, the largest savings often come from how energy is used, not only from how it is generated. Through ICTnexus, the offering includes:

• energy management systems and dashboards

• building automation (BMS) for HVAC, lighting, hot water and refrigeration

• intelligent load control, so solar and battery energy goes to the right loads at the right time and demand peaks fall

• metering and verification, so clients can see exactly what they are saving

5. IoT for Grid, Water and Environmental Monitoring

On small islands, the data that matters is spread across the whole island. It sits on distribution feeders and transformers, in water tanks and pumping stations, in wastewater plants, and in the lagoon. ICTnexus already does this in Rarotonga with its LoRaWAN® Smart-Island Network. This long-range, low-power wireless network connects battery-operated sensors over kilometres and feeds their data to a single dashboard. Applications include:

• Grid monitoring: Janitza power analysers and GridVis® energy analytics measure voltage, frequency, harmonics, load and outages at substations, feeders, transformers and large customers. Utilities get the visibility they need to integrate more solar and batteries safely.

• Water: tank levels, flow, pressure and pump status across supply networks, resorts and community water systems. Leaks and failures are detected early, before tanks run dry.

• Wastewater: treatment plant monitoring and alarms. ICTnexus retrofitted an IoT wastewater monitoring system at Sunset Resort in Rarotonga, helping operators protect the lagoon and meet environmental requirements.

• Environmental monitoring: weather, temperature, humidity, rainfall and other environmental sensors. They support solar forecasting, cyclone preparedness and environmental reporting.

• Hospitality and eco-certification: property-wide metering of electricity and water. It provides the documented evidence that resorts need for programmes such as Mana Tiaki Eco Certification.

One IoT network carries all of this, so each new sensor is cheap to add. A single island-wide platform can then serve the utility, the water authority, hotels-resorts and government agencies at the same time.

The result is one integrated solution. Generation, storage, monitoring and loads work together instead of as separate systems from different suppliers.

Who Benefits

• Utilities in New Zealand and the Pacific: higher renewable share, better grid stability, and power quality insight across the network.

• Hotels and resorts: lower diesel and electricity bills, reliable power for guests, and building automation that reduces waste without affecting comfort.

• Commercial businesses: less exposure to demand charges, backup power for critical operations, and clear energy reporting.

• Government and community facilities: resilient power for hospitals, schools, water supply and emergency services, especially in cyclone-prone locations.

Australian Engineering, Local Presence

Power Edge Engineering is based in the Tonsley Innovation District in South Australia. It is an electrical engineering consultancy specialising in solar, battery storage, hybrid generation and microgrid projects. Its experience covers more than 200 MW of installed capacity across over 20 renewable and mining power projects.

With Michael Welzel and ICTnexus based in Auckland, Power Edge now has a local presence for New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. That means faster response, local knowledge, and an understanding of the realities of island infrastructure.

Looking Ahead

The summit made one thing clear. The Pacific and New Zealand are moving quickly from planning to delivery, and the projects that succeed will combine solid engineering with practical, maintainable technology.

Noel and Michael thank the organisers, Freeman Media, and everyone who shared their time and ideas over the two days. Conversations started in Auckland will continue in the weeks ahead with utilities, resort operators, developers and government agencies across the region.

Planning a renewable energy, microgrid or energy management project in New Zealand or the Pacific Islands?
Get in touch to find out how Sustainable Island Solutions can work for your site.

Power Edge Engineering, New Zealand & Pacific Islands & ICTnexus Cook Islands
Michael Welzel, ICTnexus & Power Edge
Email: info@ictnexus.com

Power Edge Engineering, Australia
Email: sales@poweredge.au · Web: poweredge.au