Harapaki Wind Farm
CountryNew Zealand
LocationHawke's Bay
Coordinates39°11′2″S 176°41′35″E / 39.18389°S 176.69306°E / -39.18389; 176.69306
StatusUnder construction
Owner(s)Meridian Energy Limited
Operator(s)
Wind farm
Hub height85 metres (279 ft)
Rotor diameter120 metres (390 ft)
Power generation
Units operational5
Units planned41
Nameplate capacity176 MW
Annual net output542 GWh[1]

The Harapaki Wind Farm is a wind farm project in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand. Construction began in June 2021 and is expected to continue for three years.[2][3]

History

In 2006, Hawke's Bay Wind Farm Ltd was granted resource consent for a 75 turbine, 225 MW wind farm at Titiokura.[4] The same year Unison Networks was granted consent for a 15 turbine, 45 MW development. Both consents were upheld by the Environment Court in October 2006.[5] A proposed expansion of Unison's project[6] was rejected by the Environment Court in 2009.[7][8]

In 2010 Hawke's Bay Wind Farm Ltd was purchased by Meridian Energy.[9] Unison's consent was purchased in 2011, and the sites combined.[10]

In August 2019 Meridian sought interest from potential contractors for the wind farm's construction.[10] Construction was expected to begin in 2020, but was delayed due to the possible closure of the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter.[11] In February 2021 Meridian announced that construction would begin later that year, and would take approximately three years.[12][13] Site preparation began in mid-2021.[14] The first turbines arrived in Napier in March 2023[15] and transportation of components to the wind farm site began in July 2023 when State Highway 5 had been sufficiently repaired following the damage caused by Cyclone Gabrielle.[16]

The wind farm began generating in November 2023[17][18] and is expected to reach full capacity by September 2024.[19]

Location

The wind farm is being built on the Maungaharuru Range, near the Titiokura Summit, about 34 km northwest of Napier Airport.[4] The altitude of the range is approximately 1300 metres.

Operation

The wind farm will use 41 Siemens Gamesa 4.3 MW turbines, measuring 85 m (279 ft) from base to hub with a rotor diameter of 120 m (394 ft). Electricity will be supplied to the national grid via a new substation on Transpower's Redclyffe-Whirinaki-Wairakei 220 kV transmission line.[20]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Meridian kicks off $395m Harapaki development". BusinessDesk. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  2. ↑ Marty Sharpe (24 February 2021). "Meridian Energy's huge new $395 million wind farm, and 260 jobs, coming to Hawke's Bay". Stuff. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "A lot of air . . ". Hawkes Bay Today. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Fact sheet: August 2007" (PDF). Hawke's bay wind farm ltd. August 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 October 2008. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  5. ↑ "Environment Court says yes to Te Pohue turbines". 19 July 2007. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  6. ↑ "Titiokura/Te Waka Wind Farm" (PDF). Unison. August 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 October 2008. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  7. ↑ "Wind farm decision a waste, says lines company". RNZ. 24 February 2009. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  8. ↑ Marty Sharpe (20 March 2009). "Maori issues cited as wind farm declined". Stuff. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  9. ↑ Marty Sharpe (5 November 2010). "Meridian buys company with wind farm consent". Stuff. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  10. 1 2 Marty Sharpe (5 August 2019). "Wind farm first approved 14 years ago may finally get underway". Stuff. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
  11. ↑ Doug Laing (27 August 2020). "Hawke's Bay windfarm shelved because of Tiwai Point closure plan". Hawke's Bay Today. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  12. ↑ Tom Pullar-Strecker (24 February 2021). "Meridian aims to build new wind farm every three years". Stuff. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  13. ↑ Gianina Schwanecke (23 February 2021). "Hawke's Bay wind farm will create 260 jobs in 3 years, but iwi's long term concerns remain". Hawke's Bay Today. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  14. ↑ "Work on Harapaki Wind Farm, north of Napier, set to spin to full speed in spring". Hawke's Bay Today. 29 August 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  15. ↑ James Pocock (6 March 2023). "Turbine components arrive for Harapaki wind farm in Hawke's Bay". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  16. ↑ Doug Laing (19 July 2023). "New Hawke's Bay wind farm: Five months on the road to Harapaki". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  17. ↑ "Cyclone-delayed wind farm starts delivering power". Business Desk. 17 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  18. ↑ James Pocock (2 December 2023). "Hawke's Bay wind farm: What it's like in the hills as $448m Harapiki sustainable energy project takes shape". Hawke's Bay Today. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  19. ↑ "Harapaki Wind Farm Development, Hawke's Bay: July 2023 Update" (PDF). Meridian Energy Limited. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  20. ↑ "Harapaki Wind Farm, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand". www.power-technology.com. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
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