The Government’s fast-track approvals process has signed off Contact Energy’s Southland Wind Farm, a 380MW project spanning 58km² of privately owned land about 30km southeast of Gore.

Contact lodged its substantive application in August 2025. Ministers said an expert panel process took around five months before granting approval. The development will include 55 turbines, each up to approximately 7MW, a wind farm substation, access roads and new transmission lines to connect into the Transpower National Grid.

Ministers positioned the wind farm as New Zealand’s largest to date. The project is expected to supply power for up to 150,000 households. Energy Minister Simon Watts said adding more generation would support reliability and put downward pressure on prices.

Regional Development Minister Shane Jones said construction would inject about $13.5 million into the local economy and create up to 300 jobs, with 10 to 14 full-time staff needed to operate the site once commissioned.

Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop noted an earlier version of the project had been declined resource consent after years of process, largely due to concerns about landscape and visual effects. He said the fast-track pathway was designed to avoid lengthy, uncertain processes for nationally significant projects.

The decision adds to a growing list of projects advanced under the Fast-track Approvals Act. According to the Government, 15 projects have now been approved by expert panels, with decisions on substantive applications taking an average of 128 working days once deemed complete and in scope. A total of 149 projects are currently listed as eligible to apply.

Conditions attached to the Southland Wind Farm approval and a construction timeline were not detailed in today’s release.