Southdown Power Station

Southdown Power Station was a natural gas-fired combined cycle gas turbine cogeneration power station in Southdown, a suburb in southern Auckland, New Zealand. When operational, it was New Zealand's northernmost power station with a capacity exceeding 50 MW.

Southdown Power Station
Southdown Power Station's turbine stacks
CountryNew Zealand
LocationSouthdown, Auckland
Coordinates36.927563°S 174.827328°E / -36.927563; 174.827328
StatusDecommissioned
Commission dateDecember 1996
Decommission dateDecember 2015
Owner(s)Mighty River Power
Thermal power station
Primary fuelNatural gas
Combined cycle?Yes
Cogeneration?Yes
Power generation
Units operational3× Gas
1× Steam
Make and modelGeneral Electric
Nameplate capacity170 MW
Annual net output850 GWh

History

The plant was developed by the Southdown Cogeneration Joint Venture, a joint venture between TransAlta and Mercury Energy.[1] The plant had two LM6000 gas turbines and one steam turbine, fueled on natural gas and producing 114MW. The plant was expected to emit about 410,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.[2]

In 2000, Mighty River Power purchased 50% of the plant[3] and purchased the remainder in 2002.[4] A third LM6000 gas turbine was added in 2007. This was operated in open cycle mode.

Operation

Southdown was owned and operated by electricity generator Mighty River Power (now Mercury Energy), and complemented the company's renewable hydroelectric and geothermal stations. The station, strategically located in the south-central Auckland urban area, provided voltage support for the city, and helped to meet the peak demand requirements in the Auckland region. Southdown was also extensively used during dry periods, when there was insufficient water to run Mighty River Power's eight hydroelectric power stations on the Waikato River at full capacity.

Apart from generating 170 MW of electricity for the wider Auckland area, Southdown also provided steam to the local industrial area near the station. At full capacity, the station could provide 180 tonnes (177 long tons; 198 short tons) of steam per hour, piped from the station to consumers at pressures of 155 and 910 kilopascals (22.5 and 132.0 psi).

In the 2008 - 2009 financial year, Might River Power reported 249,407 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from Southdown.[5]

In March 2015, Mighty River Power announced that it would decommission Southdown[6] and sell the plant overseas.[7]

See also

References
  1. Decision 280 (PDF), Commerce Commission, 13 September 1996
  2. NZPA/NZH (24 March 1995). "Mercury Energy plan to build plant in Auckland". Royal Society of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 12 June 2012.
  3. Rotherham, Fiona (29 March 2000). "Southdown joint-venture deal in offing". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  4. "Mighty River Power secures interests in Southdown co-generation plant" (Press release). Mighty River Power. 19 November 2002.
  5. "Climate Change : Our Footprint". Mighty River Power. 2012. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  6. James Weir (24 March 2015). "Mighty River Power to close Southdown power station". Stuff. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  7. "Mighty River shutting down Southdown station". New Zealand Herald. 24 March 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
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