Mercury NZ

Glorious Southland weather helped us kick-start work on stage 2 of our Kaiwera Downs wind farm project on Thursday. It was very much a team effort with our construction partners, community members, landowners, representatives of Hokonui Rūnanga, Gore District Council and Mercury, taking a turn to use the ceremonial spade to break the ground to officially mark the start of work on the 36-turbine wind farm expansion. The project follows from stage 1, which involved constructing 10 wind turbines commissioned in 2023. Stage 2 will be completed in 2027 and the entire 46-turbine wind farm will generate up to 198MW of renewable energy and become the largest wind farm in the South Island. Kaiwera Downs demonstrates Mercury’s commitment to provide more renewable energy generation to help decarbonise New Zealand.  #windfarm #rewnewableenergy #kaiweradowns

Applications for our 2024/25 Summer Intern Programme are closing on August 1st. Meet Aleksia & Ashlee who joined us for the programme last year. Aleksia Junge is studying a BE(Hons) in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Waikato. For most of her time with us she worked with our Karāpiro Rehabilitation Project team working on the project management and the mechanical engineering aspects. “I really appreciated my time at Mercury, I especially enjoyed getting to work on a large project and being out on site every day to see it all come together and having the opportunity to work with people who are passionate about what they do.” Ashlee Blaymires joined our Dam Safety Team over the summer and got to visit every one of our hydro-generation sites along the Waikato River, and worked on updating our Dam Surveillance Procedure documentation. “I gained first-hand experience, in using dam monitoring equipment and performing inspections around the dams and structures, at times working at heights and in confined spaces. The opportunity to work on real-world projects has equipped me with invaluable knowledge and skills that I am eager to apply in my future endeavours. Exploring unique spaces around the dams (despite the occasional encounter with a Weta!) added a layer of richness to my internship experience that I will always cherish.” Applications are closing soon for the following: Well Engineering https://lnkd.in/gAf-kqYg GIS/Environmental Science https://lnkd.in/g_snubeQ Geothermal Technical Resource https://lnkd.in/gW6JcRfv Mechanical/Mechatronics https://lnkd.in/g-Hm-sb2 Control Systems/Electronic/Mechatronics https://lnkd.in/gANhSHds Chemical/Process Safety https://lnkd.in/gBV6Nyns Civil & Structural Engineering https://lnkd.in/g8NMERKE Electrical Engineering https://lnkd.in/gcyQrJi6

Great interview with Bryn Wilson, our 2024 representative on The Aotearoa Circle’s Rangatahi Advisory Panel.

We’ve achieved a major milestone in our multi-year upgrade of the Karāpiro Hydro Power Station on the Waikato River. It took just two hours, three cranes and a special heavy-duty trailor to manoeuvre and lift this 40-tonne water intake gate into place at the top of Karāpiro Dam on Monday morning. The gate is the second of three built and installed by Ashhurst Engineering & Construction Co (1989) Ltd in the Manawatū. Once the gate is operational, we can use it to begin testing and commissioning the second new hydro turbine. Full installation of all three turbines is expected by August 2025. Work at Karāpiro is part of our long-term hydro refurbishment programme, to protect these assets so they can manage water flow in a way that looks after the environment and optimises energy from the awa to provide more renewable energy to New Zealand. #karāpirohydropower #renewableenergy

Yesterday, we proudly attended the re-opening ceremony of the Starship Respiratory and Sleep Lab. This marks the beginning of a new chapter in providing enhanced respiratory services for our children at Starship, our national children’s hospital. Together with our wonderful customers, we are funding the refurbishment of the Starship Respiratory and Sleep Lab, located in Starship Outpatients. This follows Mercury’s $3.8 million investment to upgrade Outpatients which was completed in 2018. Thanks to our generous customers, the refurbishment means the Starship respiratory team now have a fit-for-purpose clinical space, which also offers a vibrant and comfortable space for patients and whānau. Kids like Charlie (pictured) will greatly benefit from this improved environment. Starship Foundation 💛 ✨ ⭐

Our Wholesale Telecommunications Business Development Manager, Karen Lindsay-Kerr says, "We've had a great experience co-locating in Chorus EdgeCentres (Chorus NZ Limited) and as they expand we look to expand with them." If your business would like to talk with us about datacentre services click here: https://lnkd.in/g2zvEtMK

Attention all engineering students interested in the energy sector! Our summer internship programme gives real-world experience to tertiary students with an interest in electricity generation and the opportunity to learn about renewable energy. This year’s internship programme is expected to run from November 2024 - February 2025 during which you will have the opportunity to work alongside a great team of people on a wide range of projects and challenges. In a few short months, you'll have experience and knowledge that will set you apart from your classmates and contribute towards your engineering hour requirements where applicable. Applications are now open for the following: Well Engineering https://lnkd.in/gAf-kqYg GIS/Environmental Science https://lnkd.in/g_snubeQ Geothermal Technical Resource https://lnkd.in/gW6JcRfv Mechanical/Mechatronics https://lnkd.in/g-Hm-sb2 Control Systems/Electronic/Mechatronics https://lnkd.in/gANhSHds Chemical/Process Safety https://lnkd.in/gBV6Nyns Civil & Structural Engineering https://lnkd.in/g8NMERKE Electrical Engineering https://lnkd.in/gcyQrJi6 #opportunity #internship #students #renewableenergy #electricity #engineering

Our process engineer Ivo Lemmens and team delivered a great presentation and workshop at this year's NZ Geothermal Week in Taupō, on the safety improvements made at our Rotokawa geothermal power station. This work is part of our agreement with WorkSafe, to share resources and lessons learned with the industry, following the steam hammer event at Rotokawa in 2021. Feedback recorded showed the workshop had increased people’s knowledge of the complexities of steam hammer events. Contact Energy Ltd and MB Century Ltd also shared what they had learned from similar safety incidents. Sharing this knowledge with the wider geothermal community is important so we can prevent incidents like these happening again and ultimately keep people safe. Thanks to Amplify and New Zealand Geothermal Association for running the event! #NZGeothermalWeek2024

The energy sector will be a significant contributor to the electrification of Aotearoa and the country achieving its climate change goals. It's thus important to also consider the potential impacts of climate change on the energy sector. Check out this new report by The Aotearoa Circle, which does just that:

....And here we go, NZ Geothermal Week 2024 is here! As co-hosts, Amplify (Taupo District Economic Development) and NZGA are excited to bring you such a broad range of events, and have received an overwhelmingly positive response to the activities that we have on offer. Whilst most ticket sales are closed, you can still secure your spot at the NZGA Winter Seminar. Exploring the theme "Geoheat: Every Day, Everyone, Everywhere", we will learn about the direct and cascade use of the geothermal resource. The Seminar has been generously supported by the following sponsors: - We look forward to Jay Egg from Egg Geo, LLC's keynote speech, which is kindly sponsored by NIKKISO CRYO INC - Thanks to OMV's support, we will be treated to sumptuous morning and afternoon teas during the Seminar. - The lunches at the Seminar are sponsored by Sumitomo Corporation, keeping our attendees fuelled and engaged - Thanks to Western Energy Services, our Seminar attendees will receive complimentary barista coffee to start the day. The NZGA Winter Seminar is being held on Wednesday, 3rd July, at the Great Lake Centre, Taupō. Tickets are available here: https://lnkd.in/gsx2iRZh ****************************************************** The NZGA Winter Seminar is part of NZ Geothermal Week, 1st - 6th July in Taupō, co-hosted by Amplify and NZGA. Our thanks to NZ Geothermal Week gold sponsor Contact Energy Ltd, NZ Geothermal Week silver sponsors GNS Science, MB Century Ltd and Mercury NZ, and our individual event sponsors, listed here: https://lnkd.in/gEki9nQJ ****************************************************** #nzgeothermalweek #geothermal