Meridian kicks off $395m Harapaki development

Meridian kicks off $395m Harapaki development
A mockup of the proposed Harapaki windfarm from State Highway 5
Staff reporters
Meridian Energy plans to spend $395 million building the Harapaki windfarm northwest of Napier.The project, deferred in August when the future of the Tiwai Point smelter was in doubt, comprises 41 turbines and will have a total capacity of 176 megawatts.It will deliver about 542 gigawatt-hours of electricity a year, enough to supply about 70,000 homes, when it comes online mid-2024. The company expects it to deliver about $35m of operating earnings annually, assuming a generation price of $67 per megawatt-hour.“Renewable generation is an...