In October 2009 Meridian Energy annouced it would begin construction at its Te Uku wind farm, near Raglan, before the end of the year. Construction will require two summers, so first power will be generated in 2011 at the earliest.
The wind farm will have 28 Siemens 2.3-megawatt wind turbines, giving a total generating capacity of 64.4 megawatts. Once construction is complete, the wind farm is expected to generate as much electricity as used by about 30,000 average New Zealand homes on an annual basis.
Te Uku is unique as it will be the first wind farm built under a partnership between a state-owned power generator and retailer and a community power trust.
Under an agreement between the two companies, Meridian will build and operate the turbines, as well as owning the electricity generated by the turbines. WEL Networks will own and manage the electrical lines and substation within the wind farm as well as the high voltage line to connect the wind farm to the grid.
The Waikato District Council granted WEL Networks resource consent for the project in June 2008. Appeals of the consent were settled following successful mediation and without proceeding to an Environment Court hearing. The 25-kilometre transmission line required to link the wind farm to the national grid was granted consent in June 2009.
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