Fifty years of geothermal power generation at Wairakei

The challenges and changes that have occurred over the last 50 years of remarkable service from the Wairakei Geothermal Power Project are reviewed. The project was initially constructed during the 1953–1963 period. Plant changes including the decommissioning of the high-pressure turbine generators, the installation of a 3.5-MW intermediate-low pressure steam turbine at the Wairakei Power Station in 1996, the commissioning of the 55 MW Poihipi Power Station in 1997, the 14 MW binary power plant at the Wairakei Power Station in 2005, and a proposed new station to be constructed in the Te Mihi area in 2011–2016 are briefly discussed. Also reviewed are steamfield aspects including steam separation processes, a pilot scheme that was designed to carry hot geothermal water some distance before flash steam generation by pressure reduction, steam production from vapor-dominated regions in the Wairakei reservoir, geothermal water injection, and cascade and direct heat uses. Finally, various aspects of the Wairakei development that have contributed to its success are described. It is anticipated that the geothermal resource will be producing beyond 2028 at generation levels 50% above the current (2008) level.