Lightsource bp & Contact Energy to Develop 150 MW Solar PV Project in New Zealand

Lightsource bp, which delves into the development and management of solar energy projects, will develop one of New Zealand’s largest solar development project at Christchurch Airport. Lightsource bp and New Zealand based Contact Energy, will together develop the 150 MW solar project. The deal marks the firm’s first project in New Zealand.

The Kowhai Park project will be built to power Christchurch’s airport and will have around 300,000 solar panels. The construction of the New Zealand solar farm is expected to start in 2024 and will be used to power Christchurch’s Airport, according to Mike Fuge, CEO at Contact Energy.

“We have committed to creating up to 380,000 MWh of grid-scale solar generation by 2026, this project will deliver over half of that. We’re bringing our proven track record of delivering domestic renewable projects in order to meet the massive anticipated demand for renewable electricity in New Zealand,” added Fuge.

Both companies entered into a partnership in April 2022 to co-develop grid-scale solar farms across New Zealand with the Kowhai Park expected to be the first solar project in the country.

Christchurch Airport Chief Executive, Justin Watson, said, “In future, the solar park will also be home to green hydrogen generation.”

Lightsource bp continues to enter newer markets to develop solar PV projects, such as New Zealand, and recently received the green light to develop the first large-scale solar project in Trinidad and Tobago, according to the company. The Caribbean solar project will have a total capacity of 148 MWp and will be located across two sites. Recently, Lightsource bp, announced that it had agreed on the sale of its 247 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) project to Plenium Partners and Bankinter Investment.