Hydro project in need of good rain

A decent rainfall is all that is needed to get the Deep Stream hydro extension power project up and running.

The $21 million TrustPower project is all but completed, with the project due to be commissioned in the next couple of weeks.

The project takes water from Deep Stream destined for Lake Mahinerangi and puts it through a canal and penstocks, and two power stations, before the water is put back into Lake Mahinerangi.

TrustPower projects manager Jim Pearson said construction was all but finished, and contractors were installing machinery in the power stations.

The dam at the top of the scheme was now 70% full, and was lapping at the bottom of the saddle dam, which will feed the canal for the power scheme.

Mr Pearson said the rainfall in the first days of March had boosted the level of the dam, which when full would cover 2.3 million cu m.

All that was needed was another decent rainfall to increase the dam to a height where water could easily flow into the saddle dam, and go down through the system.

Transmission lines have been built to transfer the power generated to the nearby Waipori scheme.

The dam's top 1.5m will be used for the power scheme, while the next 1.5m will be for the Dunedin City Council, for an emergency water supply.

Most of the 40 plus contractors on the project had finished up, and skeleton crews remained.

The project will produce about 6MW of power, enough to power about 5000 homes.

Construction started on the project in the middle of 2006.

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