Meridian Energy at a glance
Meridian Energy is the largest of the three state-owned enterprises formed from the split of ECNZ on 31 March 1999.
With a total New Zealand capacity of 2438 MW, it has some 30 percent of the country’s total electricity generation.
As well as the eight hydro power stations on the Waitaki River system, Meridian Energy owns and operates New Zealand’s largest hydro station at Manapouri, the Te Apiti and White Hill wind farms and the Wellington wind turbine.
The company supplies energy to the country’s single biggest electricity customer, the Comalco aluminium smelter at Bluff, while at the other end of the customer scale it serves householders and businesses nationwide from a purpose-built retail operations centre in downtown Christchurch.
Meridian Energy has interests in South Island hydro development opportunities, research and development investments in superconductor and fuel cell technologies and wind generation opportunities.
It employs around 500 people at offices in Christchurch, Wellington, and Twizel.
Meridian’s West Wind wind farm project nearing completion on Wellington’s south-west coast is proving its worth.
Meridian chief executive Tim Lusk says all 62 turbines are now delivering renewable energy into the national grid, and the wind farm is already enhancing Wellington’s security of electricity supply.
Most recently during the failure of equipment at Haywards substation the wind farm injected 60 MW into the Wellington region to help out in a difficult situation.
Mr Lusk says Project West Wind has produced more than 120 gigawatt hours of energy since the first turbine was commissioned in March this year. The facility has operated for extended periods at up to 60 percent capacity factor, a measure of the amount of time it generates at equivalent to full capacity. The world average for wind farms is 23 percent.
“The project is ahead of schedule and we expect it will be handed over to our operational people in a few weeks’ time, well ahead of the projected hand-over at the end of the year.”
Generating Assets
Waitaki River system
The Upper Waitaki system begins at Lake Tekapo. Water passes through the Tekapo A power station and is diverted by a purpose-built hydro canal to Tekapo B station on the shores of Lake Pukaki.
Water is drawn by canal from both Lakes Pukaki and Ohau to supply Ohau A, B and C power stations, before being discharged into Lake Benmore.
After passing through the Benmore power station, the water flows down the Waitaki River through the Aviemore and Waitaki stations.
The Waitaki system holds about 66 percent of New Zealand’s hydro storage and provides some 25% of the country’s total power supply.
Manapouri
The Manapouri power station – New Zealand’s largest hydro station - lies 178m underground on the western shore of Lake Manapouri. After passing through the station the water flows into Doubtful Sound via two 10km-long tailrace tunnels.
All of the stations are designed to be remote controlled from a control centre at Twizel
Te Apiti
One of the country’s largest wind farm stands on the northern side of the Manawatu Gorge. Its 55 NEG Micon turbines give it a total capacity of 90MW.
White Hill
The White Hill wind farm, near Mossburn in northern Southland, was opened in June 2007. It has a total capacity of 58MW from its 29 Vestas wind turbines, the first 2MW machines installed in New Zealand.
West Wind
Meanwhile, Meridian is working closely with the turbine suppliers, Siemens, to identify and seek remedies to the causes of noise issues being reported by nearby residents as the turbines have been built and commissioned.
“This is a natural and very manageable phase of any wind farm development as the actual plant comes into operation.
“We are confident that the project complies with our resource consent conditions in regards to noise, but we want to assure residents of Makara that we will consider all realistic options to minimise sound-related issues on individual sites.”
On completion Project West Wind will have a generating capacity of 142 megawatts (MW) which gives it the potential to provide energy to power the equivalent of 70,000 homes.
For further information contact:
Alan Seay
Phone: (04) 381-1243
Cell: 021 494-475