An artist's impression of what the airport solar farm could look like.
An artist's impression of what the airport solar farm could look like.
Two major solar farm builds planned in Hawke’s Bay have run into delays but parties involved say these will not stop either project from going ahead.
A project to build a huge solar farm next to Hawke’s Bay Airport has hit delays, but the airport says it is still committed to the bold plans.
The project includes plans to install 52,000 solar panels on airport land west of the runway with the aim of helping it become carbon-neutral.
It could cost up to $35 million and was announced by the airport in 2019.
If completed, the solar farm will produce enough electricity to power the entire airport on the outskirts of Napier and also put electricity back into the local grid.
But there are now no set timeframes for the start of construction.
A Hawke’s Bay Airport spokeswoman said “assessments” were still being completed before the resource consent application could be lodged with Napier City Council.
The airport and Manawa Energy wanted to ensure everything was done well.
A potential site for the proposed solar panel farm, to the west of the airport's runway. Photo / Supplied
“It goes without saying we would have preferred to be further advanced by now, but we think it’s important we take the time to get it right and engage appropriately with those who may be interested in the proposed project before launching directly into the consenting process.”
The spokeswoman said the project remained a “firm priority”.
“We are making good progress and once we’ve completed our due diligence we’ll be looking to advance our consent application as soon as possible.”
Ongaonga solar farm not dead after liquidation
Progress is also being made behind the scenes on a huge solar farm in Central Hawke’s Bay, a year after its developer went into liquidation.
Those involved in the process say the outlook is still good.
At the end of 2022 it was announced that the solar farm, with a full operational capacity of 160 gigawatt hours per year, enough to power 18,000 houses, was to be built on 152ha of farmland near Ongaonga.
Licensed insolvency practitioner Iain McLennan says the outlook is still good for a huge solar farm in Central Hawke’s Bay, a year after the developer went into liquidation. Photo / Rachel Wise
Iain McLennan, a licensed insolvency practitioner from McDonald Vague Insolvency handling SkySolar’s case, said earlier he did not believe the project would die with the liquidation.
Since then, a second report into the insolvency of SkySolar, published by McDonald Vague Insolvency in October, suggested a proposal received from the director of SkySolar would see all creditors paid in full by late 2023 or early 2024 if completed.
McLennan said the Ongaonga solar farm was “moving forward positively” and “the outlook is good”.
He confirmed there were discussions with Transpower, but he was unable to give further details as they were dealing with “confidential matters”.
King said the future of the project was “looking promising”.
No work has been done on site yet, despite construction originally being expected to start in winter last year before the liquidation.
King said he could not confirm when shovels would hit the ground because of confidentiality, but he hoped to share more information soon.
A Transpower spokeswoman said there were three entries for generation developments at Waipawa with Transpower.
“All three of those projects have the status of investigation, which means we have a connection investigation resourced and underway.
“Typically the investigation stage for a generation connection takes between six and 12 months, depending on the complexity of the project,” the spokeswoman said.
“This may be followed by an investment contract and a delivery stage taking between 12 and 30 months, again depending on the complexity of the project.”
Search for a new CEO
Hawke’s Bay Airport is continuing its search for a new CEO after Rob Stratford resigned from the top job earlier this year.
Stratford finished at the end of January. The airport’s management team has been in charge since, with the support of the board and directors.
“The board has initiated a process to appoint a CEO and the role is currently advertised,” the spokeswoman said.
“The board hopes to make an appointment as soon as is practical, but as is typical for such leadership roles, it is unlikely the appointee will be able to start quickly.”
The airport is jointly owned by the Crown, Napier City Council and Hastings District Council.
Gary Hamilton-Irvine is a Hawke’s Bay-based reporter who covers a range of news topics including business, councils, breaking news and cyclone recovery. He formerly worked at News Corp Australia.
James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz
