This thermal power station was completed in 1972 and was decommissioned between 2001 and 2008, it’s chimney was once the tallest structure in New Zealand, it is now being demolished and in the final stages of demolition.

We began exploring this Power Station back in Easter where after trekking down in the darkness from the top of a hill we eventually reached a shoreline where we met a couple of angry seals who we had to dodge as they tried to attack us. Once we found our way in, avoiding light and the risk of areas with motion detectors we reached the main building, our eyes were greeted with a wonderland of ‘pipe-porn’ and steel. The first thing we knew we wanted to hit was the turbine room and to reach this we needed to scale some ladders through the maze of pipes and steel.

Upon reaching the turbine room we found a gigantic space full of yellow turbines, all fully lit up, the whole place echoed as you walked through it which made us feel on edge. After documenting the turbine room we advanced on to find the control room, from intel we had been given we attempted to enter through to the control room where we were met by locked doors, the control room was not to be seen that visit.

Included in this post are pictures months apart, the second series of pictures were pictures taken when the turbine room was mostly deconstructed but we finally found an intact control panel room :).

Power Station from the coast Power station chimney detached! Ladders up to the control room Beneath the turbines Turbine room Turbine room Turbine Turbine room Turbine room Controls inside turbine room Dismantled controls Dismantled pipe-porn Now dismantled under the turbines Remnants of the turbine room Remnants of the turbine room Remnants of the turbine room Remnants of the turbine room Sealed off control panels in turbine room Entrace to the control room Control room Control room Control room Control room Control room Control station 1 Control station 2 Evacuation Map of alarms at the power station Futuristic control panels Futuristic control panels Futuristic control panels Control Gauges Emergency phone Turbine room controls Control room Alarm panel Guages Control station 2 Control station 3 Control station 3 Control station TV Control room Graphs This way to control room Active power Active power grids Active power grids Active power grids Time to go