A $1.6 billion project has been given 'a likely green light,' and it is seen to line the northern Wairarapa hillsides to become New Zealand's largest wind farm, providing power for up to 370,000 homes, Dominion Post reports.

Existing plans show the turbines would rise to 155 metres high, but complete details were not yet available to builder Genesis Energy's Castle Hill Wind Farm.

The wind farm site is located in a remote, sparsely populated area, which includes the settlements of Tinui, Pongaroa, Alfredton, Makuri, Tiraumea and Bideford.

The project will provide 185 jobs during construction, 40 ongoing jobs, and bring $247 million into the Masterton and Tararua districts.

A preliminary decision on the hearing for the wind farm will be issued on March 30, with a final decision due two to four weeks after a closing statement from Genesis.

Resource hearing chairman Philip Milne said Genesis had not properly assessed the effects on amenity values, and ''further mitigation is practicable and required.''

However, last month, Genesis chief executive Albert Brantley said irrespective of the resource consent process the company was unlikely to build any new generation projects for years, and even when it did there was no guarantee the next project would be Castle Hill.