Shares of NZ Windfarms jumped 35% to NZ$0.158, marking their biggest intraday gain ever and touching an over 10-month high, while those of Meridian gained as much as 0.4% at NZ$4.875.
The wind farm, located on the North Island, currently has 91 small turbines with a total installed capacity of 45.5 megawatts (MW). It will get about 39 new turbines, taking its power generation capacity to up to 170 MW.
"This will be New Zealand's first wind farm repowering project and has the potential to generate seven times the annual renewable energy production of the existing fleet," Meridian said.
As part of the deal, Meridian will buy shares in NZ Windfarms representing 19.99% of the shareholding. It also intends to sign a 15-year power purchase deal for all the electricity produced from the repowered project, it said.
The final investment decision for the project expansion is expected to occur in the second quarter of 2025, with completion expected towards the end of fiscal 2027.
