Town guaranteed bug-proof power

By SCOTT MACLEOD

TAUPO - Taupo is plugging itself as one of the few places in New Zealand where the electricity supply is guaranteed to survive the Y2K bug.

As people in other communities chew their nails anxiously tonight, district councillors in Taupo will smugly point to their new Rotokawa geothermal station.

They said yesterday that the town was a self-sufficient island in a sea of Y2K chaos because of a deal between its electricity supplier, TrustPower, and the station's owner, Power New Zealand. Power would be pumped directly into Taupo should the national grid collapse.

Power chiefs told the council of the plan at a pre-Christmas briefing.

Spokesman Wayne Carter said Rotokawa would take little more than an hour to fire up if the nation plunged into darkness.

"Taupo is very fortunate," he said. "There are very few towns and cities in this position."

Mayor Joan Williamson said the safeguard was comforting for residents and the thousands of tourists who had flocked to the town.

Industry experts believe the national grid will survive the Y2K bug, but expect blackouts of up to two days in some areas.