WELLINGTON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- The construction of the 230-hectare solar farm, currently the largest planned in New Zealand, officially started on Tuesday in Christchurch, a big boost to the country's renewable energy sector.

The 300 million-NZ dollar (186.47 million-U.S. dollar) Kowhai Park solar farm in the largest city of the South Island is a key initiative that supports decarbonization, said a statement of the Christchurch Airport, which developed the solar farm with Contact Energy and Lightsource bp.

The 162-megawatt solar farm, located on land just beyond the runways, will generate enough green energy to power 36,000 homes annually and will be operational by the second quarter of next year, the statement said.

A sod-turning ceremony, which was attended by Energy Minister Simeon Brown, was held on Tuesday to mark the beginning of the building of the solar farm which would have about 300,000 solar panels.

New Zealand needs to double the amount of renewable energy over the next 25 years out to 2050, Brown said, adding that he wanted to see more of it right across the country.

"New Zealand currently has an energy shortage. The lakes are low, the sun hasn't been shining, the wind hasn't been blowing, and we have an inadequate supply of natural gas to meet demand," the minister said on Monday.

That has led to New Zealand currently having the highest wholesale electricity prices of any of the countries New Zealand normally compared itself to, Brown said, adding that it is devastating for New Zealand's manufacturing and export sectors.

The government has moved to address the serious risk to energy security and affordability, announcing plans to reverse the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration, with legislation to be passed by the end of the year, and remove regulatory barriers to the construction of critically needed facilities to import Liquefied Natural Gas as a stopgap. Enditem

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