So, like, Meridian Energy is all excited about this new Battery Energy Storage System they built up in Northland, you know? They’re all like, “Oh yeah, this giant battery is gonna make things so much better for us in the future.” And they’re not just talking about storing energy when it’s cheap and releasing it when it’s peak demand time – they’re also saying it’s gonna help out in power outages too. How cool is that?
The battery park, spread over a two-hectare site at Marsden Point, is like the first of its kind in New Zealand, costing a whopping $186 million. That’s a whole lot of moolah, right? But hey, it’s gonna be able to supply power to like 60,000 homes in Northland for two hours straight. That’s pretty impressive if you ask me.
And get this – Meridian is already planning stage two of their whole energy project. They wanna build a massive solar farm next to the battery, which is gonna cost them around $227 million. That’s a whole lot of panels spread over a big piece of land. But hey, if it helps bring down electricity bills in Northland, then I’m all for it. Who doesn’t want cheaper power, right?