Genesis Energy chairman Brian Corban today said the state-owned company would not be declaring any dividend payments to the government, its sole shareholder, this year.
He said the net profit was a “strong result”, considering the rising cost of fuel and the extensive development Genesis was engaged in.
“Again this year we have been running Huntly hard to meet the growing demand for electricity, with four 250MW generators on full output for six months over winter,” he said, referring to the existing Waikato gas-coal fired station.
“The increased demand means our new 385MW Huntly combined cycle gas turbine will provide welcome relief when it is fully commissioned in April 2007,” he added, referring to the new station commonly known as e3p (Energy Efficiency Enhancement Project).
Whenever the existing Huntly plant was available, Genesis offered its output into the electricity markets. Reduced inflows and rapid draw-downs of South Island hydro reserves during the last spring and summer months resulted in the station producing its highest-ever annual amount of electricity generation – 6009 gigawatt hours of output.
“This year’s high dispatch reflects the current narrow gap between supply and demand,” Corban said.
During the June year, the Huntly station fired 2.4 million tonnes of coal, 85.2% of total fuel used, with natural gas only providing 14.8% – a reversal of the production profiles of the last decade.
Construction of the e3p gas turbine station was advanced substantially during the financial year and, together with a new cooling tower for the existing station, contributed to capital expenditure of $NZ265 million for the year.
“Genesis Energy is on track to build a first-class energy company, underpinning the continued development of the New Zealand economy,” Corban said.
Company spokesperson Richard Gordon told PetroleumNews.net that Genesis would continue talking to petroleum explorers regarding future gas supplies, particularly for its planned gas-fired station at Rodney, north of Auckland.
“There seems to be plenty of short-term gas about and we have contracts for Mangahewa, Pohokura, and some Maui gas through Vector subsidiary NGC. We are also a partner in the Kupe gas field due to come onstream in mid 2009,” Gordon said.
“However, post-2014, things look tight for us, so we will certainly be looking for more assured supplies if we are to have the Rodney station commissioned in 2008 or 2009.”
Genesis is also a partner in the onshore Taranaki Cardiff tight gas field that is due for further testing and a planned well workover late this year or early next year.
