20 | Southland: Higgins Group - Kaiwera Downs Wind Farm T T Russell Fredric Wind farm expertise comes to the fore REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Higgins Group’s well-established expertise put the company in a favourable position to win the civil works contract for the recently completed Kaiwera Downs Wind Farm project, South Island construction manager Peter Brown says. Initially nominated for early contactor involvement, Higgins Group completed the civil works for the first stage of the wind farm’s construction. Located approximately 15km southeast of Gore, Kaiwera Downs is the sixth wind farm project undertaken by Higgins, which has successfully delivered infrastructure for five of New Zealand’s largest wind farm projects including Mercury’s Waipipi, Tararua T3 Meridian’s Te Apiti, West Wind and Mill Creek. These projects, combined, have seen Higgins involved in the construction of 50% of New Zealand’s total of 1045 megawatts of wind energy production. Higgins work at Kaiwera Downs involved excavating 170,000 cubic metres of earth to lay concrete foundations for 10 wind turbines as well as upgrading and providing road access to and around the site, with its part of the contract valued at $17 million, completed over 10 months. Each turbine is 145 metres high at the blade tip and produces 4.3 megawatts. When operational by the end of this year, the wind farm will produce enough power for 22,500 homes (size of Rotorua) or 66,000 electric vehicles. The $115 million Kaiwera Downs wind farm was not a complex project for Higgins to undertake, but the company has completed or has in progress many large scale projects of national significance and, despite some retraction in the economy, Peter is upbeat about the group’s current and future workload. “It’s bright and there’s a lot of opportunities in the South Island.” There is plenty of scope within Higgins Group, which is owned by Fletchers, for a vast array of careers, Peter says. He returned to New Zealand in January after a four year stint in Fiji. “Similar to our North Island and South Island business, we’ve got maintenance contracts and major projects over there.” The opportunity for Peter to work in Fiji highlights what can be possible for people to develop skills and expertise and to be promoted within the group. Nationwide the company is a major employer, with 1600 staff on its payroll. Whether they are working on a straightforward civil works project or major infrastructure, the breadth and depth of this pool of talent is “outstanding”, Peter says. “Speaking for the South Island team, we’ve got people that have been 10, 20, 30 years in our business. “That speaks volumes of our culture and “If you’re interested in entering this industry, the time is ripe. This approach actively seeks opportunities to hire more women and encourages fresh perspectives on approaching high-end infrastructure projects.” obviously it’s a culture of the understanding our business as well, and then when we go to deliver a job, they’ve been with us so long they bring a great depth of experience to it which is extremely beneficial to our clients as well.” Higgins is committed to advancing its career initiatives, including promoting gender diversity within its workforce. The company is actively working to create an inclusive environment that fosters opportunities for women in the industry. “If you’re interested in entering this industry, the time is ripe. This approach actively seeks opportunities to hire more women and encourages fresh perspectives on approaching high-end infrastructure projects.” Higgins has its Women in Construction network and Women to Leadership programmes to actively support its female workforce and to help to shape women’s experiences at work and give practical support to emerging leaders Regardless of gender, the opportunities with the group are plentiful, from careers that require tertiary or university qualifications to the company providing apprenticeships and ground- level options. “There’s a vast range that we are looking at and wanting to employ.” Kaiwera Downs is the sixth wind farm project undertaken by Higgins.
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