A 150MW solar farm – by far the biggest in New Zealand to date – is to be built at Christchurch Airport, and funded by Australian-based renewable energy fund Solar Bay.

The solar farm – said to be big enough to power the equivalent of 20 per cent of Christchurch homes – will be built on a 400 hectare lot of land called Kōwhai Park, and is likely to be expanded in coming years.

Kōwhai Park will also support the future development of green fuel production for land and air transport, green data centres and green vertical farming, and airport CEO Malcolm Johns said it was part of the airport’s plan to become climate positive over the coming decade.