Contact Energy will spend $30 million on a series of appraisal wells on Taupo's Tauhara geothermal steamfield as it builds towards a final investment decision for a new power station in 2020.
The drilling programme - involving four appraisal wells - will commence in August and be completed in early 2020, it said. The bulk of the $30 million will be spent in New Zealand.
“A potential new geothermal power station at the foot of Tauhara Maunga is New Zealand’s cheapest and most attractive option for renewable baseload electricity generation,” said chief executive Dennis Barnes.
