Contact Energy has selected Voith Hydro to upgrade its Roxburgh hydropower plant on the Clutha River in New Zealand. Contact is looking to increase its generation output using the same water flow by replacing four turbines with a more efficient and modern design.
Under the contract Voith Hydro will be responsible for engineering, scale model testing, manufacturing, installation and commissioning of the four new turbines with 40 MW capacity each. The hydraulic model testing of the turbine will be done at Voith Hydro’s facilities in York, Penn., USA, in August 2021. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2024 and will support New Zealand’s ambitious goals to lower carbon emissions.
Voith Hydro APAC’s President and CEO, Stephen Lewis said: “Voith Hydro is honoured to be responsible for the efficiency and performance improvements of the turbines at the historic Roxburgh power station.”
The project will be executed in a collaboration between Voith Hydro engineering centres in the United States, Germany and India, and the new turbines will be manufactured at Voith Hydro’s manufacturing facility in Vadodara, India.
The site works will be performed by local construction workers from a New Zealand-based subcontractor.
“Voith Hydro is strongly committed to the long-term development of hydropower in Australia and New Zealand,” adds Lewis.
Contact Energy CEO, Mike Fuge said the project was good news for the local economy as well: “We expect Voith will supplement its international experts with local construction workers and NZ-based contractors, which is positive news for the local Alexandra and Roxburgh communities. Projects like these will have real, tangible effects for our local communities.”
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