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Whangarei
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The Wairua Power Station is one of the oldest continuously operating hydro power schemes in New Zealand and one of only two (currently) local sources of electricity from a renewable resource. It is owned and operated by Northpower Limited, a company owned by Northpower Electric Power Trust (NEPT) on behalf of Whangarei and Kaipara electricity consumers.
It was built by the Dominion Portland Cement Company to supply electricity to its cement works at Portland, and surplus electricity went to the Whangarei Borough Council and the Maungatapere district. Construction began in March 1914 and the station was completed in September 1916 and featured two generators, a third was added in 1940 and a fourth in 2007.
Northpower purchased the scheme from Golden Bay Cement Co in 1993 and (Among other enhancements) enabled the scheme to be run remotely. In 2007 the station was upgraded as part of the government’s commitment to renewable energy and produces 5.4GWh per year which is enough to power 675 homes with renewable energy.
Te Parawhau ki Korokota as mana whenua of the area the station is located partners with Northpower, and together we work to respond to the environmental impacts of the scheme. We are proud of the elver transfer programme initiated by Matua George Tuhiwai over 10 years ago, one of the most successful in the country which has successfully transferred millions? of elver around the scheme.
Join us for a fun-filled interactive family day where you will learn about the cultural significance of the station and the future of renewable energy.
Please note there are a lot of safety hazards, we recommend children be over the age of 8 years and older.
Arrive at Northpower by 8am where a bus will transport us to Korokota Marae.
Finnisha Tuhiwai - Birchall – Rangatiratanga for Korokota Marae.
Russell Watson - Principal Engineer at Northpower – Russell has been with Northpower for 40years working as a Network Engineer.
Vanessa Fenmore – Renewables Project Manager for Northpower