Power supplier Contact Energy will close a gas power station in Auckland next month in favour of renewable forms of electricity, and may shed 26 jobs.
Chief executive Dennis Barnes says the 400MW Otahuhu B station has effectively been replaced by a geothermal operation in Waikato and will close on September 30.
A total of 33 roles are impacted by the closure but seven people will be moved to other offices, leaving 26 facing the possibility of losing their jobs. A spokesperson says the company is going through a consultation period, and there may be redeployment opportunities at one the other 12 power stations up and down the country.
Mr Barnes says the decision is not a reflection on the team's professionalism, which had seen the "safe operation of the site through a three-year period of uncertainty".
"We have rewarded our team's commitment and supported them through this time and will continue to do so during the closure process, including redeployment opportunities where suitable roles are available."
The company sought expressions of interest for power generation from the Otahuhu station and the outcome favoured a closure of the plant. The recent proposal to close Huntly Power Station didn't impact on the decision, Mr Barnes says.
"The role of thermal plants in New Zealand's electricity future is to support renewable generation and the growth of new technologies. This is best met by fast-start, gas-fired peaking power stations rather than large baseload plants."
Greenpeace energy campaigner Simon Boxer says the closure shows "outdated power stations" are fighting a losing battle.
"The writing is on the wall; renewable energy is better for jobs, the bottom line and the air we breathe," he says.
"Coming quickly off the back of the news that Huntly will be closing its smoke-belching coal boilers, Contact's announcement that Otahuhu fossil fuel-powered gas plant will be switched off to be replaced by cleaner, smarter power shows that these outdated power stations have had their day."
Mr Boxer also took a shot at the Government, suggesting Prime Minister John Key was in the midst of a "love affair with some of the most polluting industries on the planet".
"They're ignoring the tens of thousands of jobs that could be provided, and the multibillion-dollar economic boost these cutting-edge technologies could provide, and instead doing all they can to drag foreign oil companies over here."
Contact intends to continue extension works to a gas storage facility in Ahuroa to help with what they describe as an "ongoing transition to reduced thermal operations" in New Zealand. An extra 24,000 operating hours will be provided at its Taranaki combined cycle plant.
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