Meridian Energy chief executive Mike Roan said the easing of access restrictions would reduce dry-year risk and related price impacts through to winter 2028, providing extra insurance for the system while more new generation capacity is constructed.
A draft decision was released last month.
‘‘Hydro generation provides around 60% of the country’s electricity and offers storage that can play a key role when alternative sources like solar and wind are not available,’’ he said.
‘‘Its challenge is that only 23% of that capacity can be stored in lakes, and Meridian’s own lake storage equates to only 15 weeks of average generation. Today’s announcement gives us a buffer if a dry year puts pressure on that storage.’’
Meridian already managed its hydro storage carefully, and would be just as careful with this extra storage, he said.
‘‘That’s why we have committed to only using it over the remainder of 2026 if there’s heightened risk to security of supply. Even then, given current lake levels, we don’t expect to use more than half of the five metres available this year.’’
The Fast-track panel’s final decision also grants Meridian permission to permanently install rock armouring at Pūkaki Dam to ensure its resilience to wave erosion when operating the lake at lower levels.
