Mighty River Power Quarterly Operational Update

Mighty River Power Quarterly Operational Update

Three months ended 31 March 2015

Quarterly Highlights

• National demand for electricity up 2%

• ASX FY2017 futures price up $6/MWh since December

• Taupo storage 80GWh higher than last year

Demand growth and reduced thermal capacity; ASX Futures price up

During the quarter ended 31 March 2015, FY2017 ASX futures prices were up $6/MWh reflecting balance between supply and demand from an energy perspective. Electricity demand increased against the prior comparable period (pcp) for the third consecutive quarter, with national consumption up 2%, in part due to the increased electricity usage in irrigation and milk processing. The trend of reduced thermal capacity continued with Mighty River Power announcing the planned closure of its gas-fired station, Southdown, on 31 December 2015.

Despite these trends, and declining national hydro storage, wholesale prices during the period were lower than Q3 last year due to additional renewable generation from Contact’s Te Mihi geothermal plant and Meridian Energy’s Mill Creek wind farm, the return to service of Genesis Energy’s Tekapo hydro following canal repairs in the pcp, and thermal generation from Huntly.

Lake Taupo Storage 80GWh higher than same time last year

Following another quarter of low rainfall, Lake Taupo storage ended the period at 75% of average. However average rainfall since the end of March, combined with the decision to conserve water, leaves the Company well-positioned with storage 80GWh higher than last year and 84% of average (compared with 51% at the same time last year). By contrast, South Island storage dropped to 67% of average at the end of March.

Mighty River Power’s hydro generation was 707GWh (down 126GWh on pcp), 21% below the Company’s Q3 average and a record low for the third quarter since the Company was formed in 1999. This was partly offset by higher gas-fired generation, principally reflecting 65GWh of generation from the Company’s virtual peaker contract.

Advanced Meter Deployment
The Company’s metering business, Metrix, deployed 10,000 AMI advanced meters during the quarter, as mass deployment was completed in a number of networks. Metrix’s primary focus remains on systems development and integration to prepare for advanced metering service delivery and the deployment of advanced meters to Trustpower’s residential customers.

Mighty River Power will release its financial results for the 12 months ended 30 June 2015 on 28 August 2015.

ENDS

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