of two new companies, Trustpower and Tilt Renewables. The demerger enables each business to focus on their respective areas of specialisation. In 2018, Trustpower and King Country Electric Power Trust (KCEPT), assumed full ownership of King Country Energy Limited (KCE). This is the outcome of a joint venture takeover made by a wholly owned subsidiary of Trustpower and KCEPT, initiated in December 2017, that sought to acquire the balance of KCE's ordinary shares at $5 per share. Trustpower now controls 75% of KCE, with KCEPT controlling the remaining 25%. KCE sold its retail business to Trustpower in July 2018. Trustpower sold its Australian hydro-power generation assets operator GSP Energy Pty Limited for A$168 million ($129.46 million), as the company focuses on its core New Zealand business. Sale of the mass market retail business and name change In May 2022, Trustpower sold its mass market retail business, retail customer base and the Trustpower brand to Mercury NZ Ltd. The company retained its hydro-electricity assets to become NZ's largest independent electricity generator, representing around 5% of the New Zealand generation capacity and changed their name to Manawa Energy. Manawa means ‘heart’ and it speaks to the heart of the company's operations in the Bay of Plenty. The name was gifted by Ngāti Hangarau hapū in the Kaimai area. It traces the company's origins back to the first hydro-electric power station on the Omanawa River. Power stations Decommissioned stations The McLaren Falls Station on the Kaimai hydro power scheme was decommissioned in 1989 following the commissioning of the Ruahihi Power Station. In 1998 Trustpower decommissioned the Omanawa Falls Power Station and gifted it to the Tauranga City Council. See also Electricity sector in New Zealand New Zealand electricity market References External links Manawa Energy Electric power companies of New Zealand