Will NZ build a giant multibillion-dollar battery in Central Otago?

New Zealand has a power problem; in a country dependent on hydro dams, how do we generate enough electricity when it stops raining?

In 2020, Megan Woods, then New Zealand’s energy and resources minister, announced that Labour would spend $30 million investigating a potential pumped hydro dam at Lake Onslow. The dam would work as a giant battery, helping to power the country in the dry years. In 2023, the National Party pulled the plug on the project. Now, a private consortium is proposing to do it themselves.

But how will it work? How much will it cost? And will the government give it fast track approval?

Filmed and edited by Isaiah Tour
Written and presented by Robbie Nicol
Made with the support of NZ On Air