Kawerau is a town in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated 100 km south-east of Tauranga and 58 km east of Rotorua. It is the seat of the Kawerau District Council, and the only town in Kawerau District. Kawerau is a small community, with an economy that is largely driven by the nearby pulp and paper mill that is run by Norske Skog and Carter Holt Harvey. It is located along State Highway 34, southwest of Onepu, and is the terminus of the East Coast Main Trunk Railway, and the commencing point of the Murupara Branch railway. Kawerau was one of the worst-affected towns in the 1987 Edgecumbe earthquake.
