Tauhara Power Station facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tauhara Power Station |
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| Country | New Zealand |
| Location | Taupo, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 38°40′5″S 176°9′4″E / 38.66806°S 176.15111°E |
| Status | consented |
| Owner(s) | Contact Energy |
| Website Tauhara webpage |
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The Tauhara Power Station is a special kind of power plant in New Zealand, located north of Taupo. It uses heat from deep inside the Earth to make electricity. This type of energy is called geothermal power. A company called Contact Energy and the Tauhara Moana Trust are working together to build the next part of this project.
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What is Geothermal Power?
Geothermal power uses the natural heat from inside the Earth. Deep underground, there is very hot rock. Water that flows through these hot rocks gets heated up. This superheated water or steam can then be brought to the surface.
At a power station, this steam spins large machines called turbines. These turbines are connected to generators. The generators then create electricity. It's a clean way to make power because it uses Earth's natural heat.
Tauhara Power Station: Stage 1
The first part of the Tauhara project is already working. It is called the Te Huka Power Station. This plant can produce 24 megawatts (MW) of electricity. It uses geothermal steam from the Tauhara area.
Tauhara Power Station: Stage 2 Plans
Plans for a much bigger power station, called Stage 2, started in 2010. This new plant could produce 250 MW of electricity. To build it, the companies needed special permissions called resource consents. These consents are like official approvals.
The New Zealand government decided this project was very important for the country. So, an independent group called a Board of Inquiry looked at the plans. This Board approved the consents in December 2010. It was one of the first big projects to go through this new approval process.
In 2019, Contact Energy started drilling new wells. They wanted to learn more about the hot water and steam deep underground. This information helped them decide if they should build the new power plant.
Building the New Plant
The new power station is expected to cost around $580 million. In 2021, Contact Energy announced a plan to get money for the plant. They planned to sell $400 million worth of new shares in their company. This helps them raise the money needed for construction.
