The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for 425 kilometres (264 mi) through the North Island. It rises in the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupo, New Zealand's largest lake. It then drains Taupo at the lake's northeastern edge, creates the Huka Falls, and flows northwest through the Waikato Plains. It empties into the Tasman Sea south of Auckland, at Port Waikato. It gives its name to the Waikato region that surrounds the Waikato Plains. The present course of the river was largely formed about 17,000 years ago. Contributing factors were climate warming, forest being reestablished in the river headwaters and the deepening, rather than widening, of the existing river channel. The channel was gradually eroded as far up river as Piarere, leaving the old Hinuera channel through the Hinuera Gap high and dry. The remains of the old river path can be clearly seen at Hinuera where the cliffs mark the ancient river edges. The river's main tributary is the Waipa River, which has its confluence with the Waikato at Ngāruawāhia.
Genesis Energy Limited, formerly Genesis Power Limited, is a New Zealand publicly listed electricity generation and electricity, natural gas and LPG retailing company. It was formed as part of the 1998–99 reform of the New Zealand electricity sector, taking its generation capacity from the breakup of the Electricity Corporation of New Zealand (ECNZ) and taking retail customers from three local power boards in the Lower North Island.
Meridian Energy Limited is a New Zealand electricity generator and retailer. The company generates the largest proportion of New Zealand's electricity, generating 35 percent of the country's electricity in the year ending December 2014, and is the fourth largest retailer, with 14 percent of market share in terms of customers as of December 2015.
Lake Karapiro is an artificial reservoir lake on the Waikato River, 30 kilometres (19 mi) south-east of the city of Hamilton at Karapiro in New Zealand's North Island. The lake was formed in 1947 by damming the Waikato River to store water for the 96-megawatt Karapiro hydroelectric power station.
Mercury NZ Limited is a New Zealand electricity generation and electricity retailing company. All of the company's electricity generation is renewable. It owns and operates nine hydroelectric generating stations on the Waikato River and five geothermal plants in the Taupo area.
Ohakuri is a dam and hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, central North Island, New Zealand, midway between Taupo, Rotorua and Hamilton. Its dam is about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) upstream of the Atiamuri Dam.
The Aviemore Dam is a dam of the Waitaki River in New Zealand. Built from earth and concrete in the 1960s to dam Lake Aviemore, it is one of the major dams of Meridian Energy, and is used to power a hydroelectric power plant. It is a part of the Waitaki River Hydroelectric System, a scheme which supplies 30% of New Zealand's considerable amount of hydropower.
The electricity sector in New Zealand uses mainly renewable energy sources such as hydropower, geothermal power and increasingly wind energy. As of 2019, 82% of energy for electricity generation is from renewable sources, making New Zealand one of the lowest carbon dioxide emitting countries in terms of electricity generation. Electricity demand grew by an average of 2.1% per year from 1974 to 2010 but decreased by 1.2% from 2010 to 2013.
Hydroelectric power in New Zealand has been a part of the country's energy system for over 100 years and continues to provide more than half of the country's electricity needs. Hydroelectricity is the primary source of renewable energy in New Zealand. Power is generated the most in the South Island and is used most in the North Island.
Aratiatia Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the first hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, and is located 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) downstream of Lake Taupo. Aratiatia is owned and operated by Mercury Energy.
Horahora Power Station was an early hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River in New Zealand. It was the country’s first large-scale power station, completed in 1913. Initially built to service a gold mine, the power station was expanded to supply a significant part of the North Island. The power station remained in use until was submerged by Lake Karapiro, which was formed to supply the larger Karapiro Power Station.
The Karapiro Power Station is a hydroelectric power station at Karapiro on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. The power station lies on Lake Karapiro, a major rowing regatta venue. Karapiro is 30 kilometres (19 mi) south-east and upstream from the city of Hamilton and several kilometres from Cambridge. It is the last of the eight hydroelectric power stations on the Waikato River.
The Tongariro Power Scheme is a 360 MW hydroelectricity scheme in the central North Island of New Zealand. The scheme is currently operated by electricity generation company Genesis Energy.
Atiamuri Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the third of eight hydroelectric power stations on the Waikato River. The station can easily be seen from State Highway 1 between Taupo and Tokoroa.
Maraetai Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the fifth of the eight hydroelectric power stations on the Waikato River, and at 360 MW, is the largest hydroelectric station on the Waikato.
Arapuni Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is owned and operated by Mercury Energy, and is the seventh and penultimate hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River. It is also the oldest currently generating, the first government-built, and the largest capacity single hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River. The two power houses that make up the Maraetai Power Station have a larger combined capacity however.
Southdown Power Station was a natural gas-fired combined cycle gas turbine cogeneration power station in Southdown, a suburb in southern Auckland City, New Zealand. When operational, it was New Zealand's northernmost power station with a capacity exceeding 50 MW.
Whakamaru Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the fourth hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River.
The Waikato River Trails is a combined walk- and cycleway along the Waikato River. Originally conceived and started by local politicians and trustees, in 2009 the trails became one of the seven Quick Start Projects that form the beginning of the New Zealand Cycle Trail. The trail is proposed to be 100 km long, out of which 50 km existed before the NZCT scheme was created. In mid-2011, work on the last sections of the cycle trail project sections was begun, while the official grand opening occurred early November 2011.
The Aniwhenua power station is a hydroelectric power facility in Bay of Plenty in New Zealand located on the Rangitaiki River upstream of the Matahina Power Station. Water is drawn from behind a dam above the Aniwhenua Falls and diverted through a canal and a headpond to the power station before being discharged back into the river. The power station is named after the falls which are adjacent to the power station.
