Meridian Energy Secures Consent for 110MW Morrinsville Solar Farm in New Zealand

Meridian Energy has been granted consent to develop a 110‑megawatt solar farm on a 134‑hectare site located 2 km east of Morrinsville in the Waikato region. The project will install around 230,000 solar panels and is expected to generate up to 200 GWh of electricity per year—enough to power more than 25,000 average New Zealand homes. The farm will connect to the national grid at the nearby Piako substation and the consent also permits the future addition of a distributed battery energy storage system.

The development is projected to create over 100 construction jobs and tens of millions of dollars in local spending, with four to five permanent positions after completion. Environmental measures include habitat enhancement, native riparian planting, and sheep grazing alongside the panels. Final investment approval by Meridian’s board is still pending; if confirmed, construction could start in 2028 and take about two years. Meridian plans to invest roughly NZ$3 billion in renewable projects through 2030.