Wind farm developer's big switch
Page 1 of 2 5:00AM Sunday May 27, 2007
By Chris Daniels
Stage one of Windfarm's $80 million development at Te Rere Hau was completed last year. Photo / Gary Rodgers
Add some Kiwi-made engineering brains to the global push for renewable energy sources and within two years there's a $100 million utility company ready to list on the main board of the stock exchange.
Shareholders of NZ Windfarms are meeting in Christchurch tomorrow to approve a plan to transform their company from a small-scale wind farm developer to a big player on New Zealand's renewable power scene.
The growth story of NZ Windfarms is remarkable. It started life as a spin-off of Windflow Technology - the brain child of engineer Geoff Henderson - to develop and build a unique twin-bladed wind turbine.
Stage one of Windfarm's $80 million wind farm at Te Rere Hau - Maori for "fierce wind" - near Palmerston North was completed late last year. This month it raised $75 million of new capital, which will help pay for the next batch of its NZ-built turbines.
These machines are smaller and less obtrusive than some of the giant models favoured by other developers.
Company chief executive Chris Freear says using these smaller machines is an important part of its different take on wind power.
"Our approach to what wind generation should look like is certainly different to what some of the main players in the space have - particularly Trustpower and Meridian.
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