The consent application for the proposed 110MW power station, north-east of Taupo, was lodged in November 2009 by Rotokawa Joint Venture, a commercial partnership between Mighty River Power and the Tauhara North No 2 Trust.
The consents are subject to appeal until June 3, 2010. Groundwork on the $400m project is expected to start before the end of the year so that the power station is providing energy in time for winter 2013.
Doug Heffernan, chief executive of Mighty River Power, said: “This will be the third major geothermal power station Mighty River Power will have built over five years – the second with the Tauhara North No 2 Trust. It really underscores our commitment to geothermal energy development in New Zealand and the pace at which we are developing our domestic geothermal development programme.
“Once commissioned in 2013, Ngatamariki will take us – in partnership with our Maori Land Trust partners – close to operating 500MW of geothermal electricity enough power to supply half a million households.”
