Wairakei power station
Location: near Wairakei Geothermal field close to Taupo city in New Zealand
Type: geothermal
Status: Operational
Year of establishment: 1963; Modernization: 2005
Installed Capacity: 175 MW
Project Description
The geothermal water has around 260 ˚C and goes to the expander where 1400 tons per hour of steam are generated. Then the steam is supplied to the steam turbine with a flow speed of 200 km/h. The power plant consists of 11 operational units and total capacity it 175 MW. In 2005 a binary cycle power plant was constructed and it uses lower-temperature steam.
Purpose/Application
Supplies around 5% of need of North Island which is one of two main islands of New Zealand.
Unique Aspect
The geothermal plant uses steam obtained from 200 wells and depth of a well can reach up to 1500 m.
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