{"id":323477,"date":"2026-03-11T03:22:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T03:22:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/323477\/"},"modified":"2026-03-11T03:22:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T03:22:08","slug":"todd-energy-picked-to-drill-first-superhot-geothermal-well-near-taupo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/323477\/","title":{"rendered":"Todd Energy picked to drill first superhot geothermal well near Taup\u014d"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Project chair Tim Groser said Todd was chosen from four applicants to drill the specialised pioneering well following a competitive process.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">The project aims to drill to depths of up to 5-6km \u2013 almost double that of conventional geothermal wells \u2013 to try to access an untapped renewable energy source, he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">\u201cThe science tells us that \u2018supercritical\u2019 geothermal \u2013 also known as \u2018superhot\u2019 \u2013 is energy on steroids.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">\u201cDrilling this well is technically complex because of the extreme heat, pressures, and corrosive fluids it will encounter,\u201d Groser said. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">\u201cThe company has its own rig and brings a fully New Zealand-based workforce and an established local supply chain, which reduces delivery risk and supports wider economic outcomes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Preferred contractor status means MBIE will now enter negotiations with Todd Energy on the contract details.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Groser, who is a former ambassador and trade and climate change minister, said the project is the first of a planned three-well programme.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">\u201cIf this well can successfully flow superhot fluids, it will substantially increase our knowledge of superhot geothermal, which has the potential to deliver enough clean, green energy to power New Zealand three times over.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">The project is being overseen by MBIE\u2019s K\u0101noa-Regional Economic Development &amp; Investment Unit in partnership with Earth Sciences New Zealand, the iwi landowners Tauhara North No.2 Trust, and NZX-listed Mercury.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Mercury already operates two geothermal stations on the Rotokawa geothermal field near Taup\u014d, which has been selected as the site for the first superhot geothermal well.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Drilling is expected to start about mid-2027 at a location that has been pinpointed by scientists as most likely to access superhot geothermal fluids.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dmpeAfkwcv\" style=\"display:none\">Jamie Gray is an Auckland-based journalist, covering the financial markets, the primary sector and energy. He joined the Herald in 2011.<\/p>\n<p>Stay ahead with the latest market moves, corporate updates, and economic insights by subscribing to our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nzherald.co.nz\/my-account\/profile\/newsletters\/?from=cmp\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.nzherald.co.nz\/my-account\/profile\/newsletters\/?from=cmp\">Business newsletter<\/a> \u2013 your essential weekly round-up of all the business news you need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Project chair Tim Groser said Todd was chosen from four applicants to drill the specialised pioneering well following&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":323478,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[1558,138,37766,59937,1667,174609,1888,2355,266,7240,3180,111,139,69,53478,111635,3048,58423,2349,1852,61,22505,6436,2963],"class_list":{"0":"post-323477","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-been","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-contractor","11":"tag-drill","12":"tag-energy","13":"tag-exploratory","14":"tag-first","15":"tag-geothermal","16":"tag-government","17":"tag-lead","18":"tag-near","19":"tag-new-zealand","20":"tag-newzealand","21":"tag-nz","22":"tag-picked","23":"tag-preferred","24":"tag-said","25":"tag-selected","26":"tag-superhot","27":"tag-taup","28":"tag-to","29":"tag-todd","30":"tag-well","31":"tag-zealands"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=323477"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323477\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/323478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=323477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=323477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=323477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}