The left-armer will play for the Volts in the twenty20 competition which starts for the southerners three days after Christmas, in Alexandra.
Otago coach Rob Walter said McClenaghan was a quality player with a huge amount of experience who would complement the Volts attack.
He also revealed that the 34-year-old approached Walter about coming south.
‘‘He approached me a couple of months ago about whether there would be an opportunity of coming and playing for us,’’ he said.
‘‘He still has aspirations to represent his country in T20 cricket and will use this opportunity to stake those claims.’’
McClenaghan first played for New Zealand in T20 in 2012 and played his last T20 international in 2018, turning out for the World XI against the West Indies.
McClenaghan was part of the Mumbai Indians squad in the latest T20 competition but did not take part in the competition.
He had been in isolation since returning to New Zealand.
His knowledge would be a big asset for the Volts side.
‘‘He obviously has a huge amount of experience — that is the first thing we know about him. He has played a huge amount of T20 right around the world. He’s played everywhere around the world.
‘‘And he’s a left-arm quick and that is one we do not have in our bowling line-up. So that is a point of difference for us.’’
Walter said the experience McClenaghan would bring could not be underplayed.
The team had made the playoffs in last year’s T20 competition but missed out in the elimination final as it crumbled in the dying stages.
Walter said although nothing was for certain, bringing in experienced players could make a considerable difference when games were tight.
He said the bowlers the side currently had such as skipper Jacob Duffy and 22-year-old Nathan Smith had done a great job but it was good to have some variety.
Matt Bacon and Michael Rae had also performed well in the shortest form of the game.
Walter did not have any concerns about McClenaghan’s age and said the workload was not huge. Many top players were coming into their own at this age and had the experience to make an impact.
McClenaghan made himself unavailable for national selection in 2017 to go and play in T20 leagues around the world but is now wanting to get back into the national side.
There are two T20 World Cups to be played in the next two years.
He has plenty of tricks in his bowling arsenal and bowls well at the end of the innings.
McClenaghan had arrived in Dunedin and would be training with the Volts at the end of the week and over the weekend before the side has a short break over the Christmas period.
The side has two games in Alexandra in as many days, starting on December 28.
