Warkworth Satellite Earth Station: 55 years and counting
The site that brought the world to New Zealand, still going strong
In 2026, the Warkworth Satellite Earth Station marks 55 years of operation. Kordia has maintained this nationally significant site since 2004, helping ensure its critical infrastructure continues to perform around the clock.
The site, now owned by Spark New Zealand, was originally designed primarily for telephone services but it was also significant in transforming television. Before Warkworth, international footage was flown into New Zealand. Viewers who had watched Neil Armstrong step onto the moon in 1969 waited for the film to be hand carried on a flight from Australia. Warkworth changed that. Not only could the country receive live broadcast content but the station allowed New Zealand to televise the 1974 Commonwealth Games to the world live.
Over the years, the site has expanded and adapted – one of the original 100 foot (30m) satellite dishes has been dismantled and replaced as technology has evolved. Kordia has been involved in installing, commissioning and maintaining many replacements and additions, including 6.3m, 9m, 13m and 16m dishes.
Today, the Warkworth site continues to house more than 15 satellite dishes for organisations that provide highly specialised communications, such as maritime and space. It provides links to Scott Base in Antarctica, and other sites across the Pacific and the world.
Kordia’s field team maintains the site 24-hours-a-day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year ensuring that the critical operations run seamlessly.