Meridian Energy Evaluates Market Conditions for Proposed Hydro Projects in New Zealand

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources Australia (Perth, Australia)--Meridian Energy Limited (Wellington, New Zealand) has a number of hydro projects proposed and operating across Australia and New Zealand, one of which is the 35-megawatt (MW) Amuri Hydro Project. It will be managed and operated by Meridian, on behalf of a joint venture with Ngai Tahu Property (Christchurch, New Zealand).

The proposed plant is part of the ongoing development of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy. It will be located alongside Waiau River, in the Hurunui district, and will feature 10 hydraulic turbines.

The project has yet to receive several approvals, including resource consents from the local government. However, Meridian seems to be holding back the development activities on the project due to economic fluctuations predicted in the Southland Region, which is currently preparing for the worst as uncertainty continues over the future of the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter.

The Tiwai Point smelter is owned by New Zealand Aluminium Smelters Limited (Southland, New Zealand), which is a joint venture between Rio Tinto Alcan New Zealand Limited (Southland, New Zealand) and the Sumitomo Chemical Company (Osaka, Japan). Sources say that the smelter contributes $525 million to the Southland economy annually, and it undeniably is one of Southland's largest employers.

Tiwai Point uses 15% of the country's power. Closure of the plant would create a huge glut of electricity in the South Island region.

The Lake Pukaki Hydro Project is another hydro project that is being developed in the Hurunui region by Meridian. The hydro project faces similar setbacks due to the economic forecasts and Tiwai Point. Lake Pukaki, when completed, will generate 35 MW of electricity, which is enough to provide electricity for up to 10,000 average households.

The company has yet to make a decision about when to build Amuri and Lake Pukaki projects, but the options will be executed when market conditions are favourable.

Meridian is investigating options to build a 260-MW North Bank Hydro Project in the Otago region of New Zealand. The company recently closed the Land negotiations for the project due to flat demand for electricity in the region. When approved, construction would start by mid-2016 and would take more than two years to complete.

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