The recession hit state-owned Meridian Energy reported a net profit of $89.3m for the year to June 2009, and the government is expected to get a total of $293.9 million for 2009 from the firm. The company, encouraged by healthy growth, will pay a final dividend of $113.9 million and a special dividend of $150 million to the stakeholders.

Terming the overall growth satisfactory, Chief Executive Tim Lusk said: "We began the year with our storage lakes at record lows and ended in almost the opposite situation, with the company managing a series of large inflows. We began the year with our storage lakes at record lows and ended in almost the opposite situation, with the company managing a series of large inflows."

He said that healthy results were achieved despite tough conditions of the economic market. The firm paid special attention to bring efficiency in the management system to arrest adverse impact of global financial crisis.

Mr. Lusk said that the firm knows what is required by customers and continue to work on new generation capacity. He expressed satisfaction over the performance of its retail subsidiary, Powershop, launched early in 2009 adding, "Powershop has brought a new and innovative retail channel to the electricity market, which offers unprecedented choice for electricity consumers."