New Zealand stokes up geothermal development

New Zealand, already known for being a leader in geothermal energy, has announced its biggest new geothermal developments in decades.

New Zealand's Mighty River Power has announced plans to develop more than $1 billion of geothermal power plants in the next 10 years.

Yesterday, it began construction of a $275 million NZD 90 megawatt geothermal power station in the eastern Bay of Plenty, which is expected to produce more energy annually than all of the country's existing wind turbines combined, chief executive Doug Heffernan said.

Once complete, the Kawerau geothermal station would meet about one third of the eastern Bay of Plenty's demand, including supplying the Norske Skog Tasman forest products plant.

The company is considering ultimately developing 1200 MW of new geothermal power – sufficient to power 1.2 million homes.

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