New Zealand is to help fund the construction of a solar power plant in Tonga which will lessen the need for reliance on polluting diesel-generated power.
Foreign Minister Murray McCully, who is in the capital Nuku'alofa, said the plant would be built and
New Zealand is to help fund the construction of a solar power plant in Tonga which will lessen the need for reliance on polluting diesel-generated power.
Foreign Minister Murray McCully, who is in the capital Nuku'alofa, said the plant would be built and operated by Meridian Energy, with the power sold to Tonga's state-owned power company, Tonga Power Limited (TPL), under a long-term purchase agreement.
"The construction of the 1 mega watt plant will meet up to 5 percent of the electricity needs of the main island of Tongatapu," Mr McCully said. "It also supports the Tongan Government's 10-year Energy Road Map strategy to move away from expensive, imported fuels towards renewable energy sources."
Meridian is surveying a proposed site and there will be detailed design work done over the next six months along with negotiations between Meridian and TPL over the pricing.
Mr McCully's office said costs of building the plant were yet to be finalised, but the parties hoped construction would get under way early next year, with completion expected the same year.
