Whirinaki is a small settlement in the northern Hawke's Bay

Hawke's Bay

Hawke's Bay is a region of New Zealand. Hawke's Bay is recognised on the world stage for its award-winning wines. The regional council sits in both the cities of Napier and Hastings.-Geography:...

 Region of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

's eastern North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

. It lies close to the junction of State Highways 2 and 5

New Zealand State Highway network

The New Zealand State Highway network is the major national highway network in New Zealand. Just under 100 roads in both the North and South Islands are State Highways...

, and is most notable as the location of Pan Pac Mill

Pan Pac Forest Products Ltd

Pan Pac Forest Products Ltd is a Japanese owned forest products company based in Whirinaki, near Napier, New Zealand. The company includes forestry operations, manufacturing and sales of TMP wood pulp and lumbar products, employing approximately 330 staff....

, one of Hawke's Bay's largest industrial plants.

Whirinaki Power Station

The diesel powered Whirinaki Power Station was opened in 2004. Designed to be a standby power station

Peaking power plant

Peaking power plants, also known as peaker plants, and occasionally just "peakers," are power plants that generally run only when there is a high demand, known as peak demand, for electricity.-Peak hours:...

, it has a total capacity of 155MW. The power station is operated by Contact Energy

Contact Energy

Contact Energy Limited is a New Zealand electricity generator, natural gas wholesaler and electricity, natural gas, and LPG retailer.The company is the second-largest electricity generator in New Zealand , generating 24 percent of New Zealand's electricity in the year ending 31 December 2009, and...

but it is state owned.