Power regulator throws bones to consumers as Government advances broader review

Wednesday, 12 February 2025

The Electricity Authority has released three proposals that it says would give consumers more control over their energy costs and help them harness the power of rooftop solar and batteries.

The rules would require lines companies offer rebates to households when they supplied solar energy into parts of their networks that were experiencing congestion.

Retailers would need to offer consumers at least one plan that offered variable prices that were linked to the time of day electricity was used, and a plan that reflected the time day if they were buying electricity from households.

The proposals are the result of an “Electricity Competition Task Force” run jointly by the Electricity Authority and the Commerce Commission.

Electricity Authority chairperson Anna Kominik said there were are real benefits if consumers were empowered to more actively participate in the electricity market, including “increased energy resilience and reduced power costs over time”.

'We’re proposing three changes to help support this consumer empowerment and decentralisation of our energy system. Over time, this will increase community resilience and lower power costs for everyone,' she said.

The Government last year separately ordered a broader review of electricity market rules that NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones has warned would need to deliver “tangible interventions” and an abundance of energy if his party was not to go into the next election with a substantial restructure of the industry top of its agenda.

Energy Minister Simon Watts announced on Tuesday evening that the review would be led by British-based consultant Frontier Economics and peer-reviewed by “a team of international experts in energy economics”.

The review is due to be completed by the end of June, after which the Cabinet would make decisions on next steps, Watts said.

“From the review’s inception, we were clear that we needed experts capable of bringing a fresh perspective to the complex challenges facing our markets,” he said.

“The power crisis we experienced last winter highlighted how important affordable and secure electricity at internationally competitive prices is to the economic growth and prosperity of Kiwi households and businesses alike.”

Jones told industry leaders attending an energy industry breakfast on Tuesday that high power prices along with low labour productivity growth were top factors putting off investment.

“I talk to manufacturers in regional New Zealand on a regular basis and they're sitting on their backsides, not writing cheques. The first things they talk to me about, is energy and labour,” he said.