NZ InfraWatch
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Lake Onslow Pumped Hydro
Meridian Energy / Crown · Otago
Proposed pumped-hydro "battery" at Lake Onslow, Central Otago, for dry-year energy security. National cancelled the ~$16B NZ Battery Project in Jan 2024. Resurrected privately: the Clutha Pumped Hydro Consortium (shareholders incl. ex-Meridian CEO Keith Turner and former minister David Parker) was accepted into the fast-track consenting process in March 2026, proposing a scaled-back ~$8–10b scheme (≈1,500 jobs) that could be operating by ~2035. Scope, cost and financing remain unconfirmed.
Key facts
- Region
- Otago
- Sector
- Energy
- Status
- Planning
- Estimated value
- $9b
- Indicative completion
- 2035
- Funding status
- No Source
- Lead organisation
- Meridian Energy / Crown
- Election risk
- Extreme
Election risk assessment
Cancelled by National in 2024, then accepted for fast-track consent in 2026 via a private consortium — highly speculative, capital-intensive and politically contested.
Government priority alignment
COUNTER — Cancelled. Counter to the government's fast-track-renewables energy approach.
Chronology
- 2022NZ Battery Project business case; cost estimated $4–16B
- 2024National cancels Lake Onslow (January)
- 2026Clutha Pumped Hydro Consortium accepted into fast-track consenting (March); ~$8–10b, operating by ~2035 if it proceeds