FRV Australia and and Genesis have commenced construction of the biggest solar farm in New Zealand.
The 63MW Lauriston Solar Farm is located one hour’s drive from Christchurch, at Lauriston on the Canterbury Plains. The plant is on a 93ha site and, once operational, will power the equivalent of nearly 13,000 houses.
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The site is expected to be generating electricity by the end of 2024. The joint venture also signed a 10-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Genesis Energy which will take all the renewable energy from the site.
Genesis CEO Malcolm Johns said, “For New Zealand to reach net zero 2050 the country’s energy must become 60% electric, 95% renewable and available 100% of the time. Solar has a clear role to play in this transition, and Lauriston is the first stage of the joint venture commitment to build 500MW of solar capacity throughout New Zealand,” says
Johns.
FRV Australia CEO Carlo Frigerio said, “FRV Australia and Genesis have worked together
to achieve this moment, our first project in New Zealand marks the beginning of a new era with Lauriston, the first large-scale solar farm reaching operational stage in the country. We are very excited with this alliance and a very promising pipeline of solar projects expected to be delivered in the coming years.”
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The joint venture partners are also assessing three North Island sites with a combined capacity of up to 400MW as Genesis focuses on moving to around 95% renewable generation by 2035.
FRV Australia and Genesis Energy formed a joint venture in late 2021. The joint venture’s target development of 500MW of solar capacity is expected to generate about 750GWh per annum.
