Unison workers fixing power lines in Maraenui, Napier, on 20 February 2023. The Commerce Commission is also taking an interest in how vegetation is managed close to power lines. Photo: RNZ / Tim Brown
The Commerce Commission is proposing energy lines companies provide greater transparency about their decarbonisation efforts and lines management as consumers become more reliant on electricity.
The regulator said the increased disclosure requirements would help the public better understand how the performance of their lines company compared with others.
"Information on local electricity lines constraints is becoming increasingly important as more generation comes on stream and demand from electric vehicles places more pressure on local networks," commission general manager of infrastructure regulation Andy Burgess said.
The commission already required the 29 lines companies that distribute electricity in New Zealand to publish information each year on aspects of their performance, including data on pricing, future expenditure forecasts, outages and interruptions, and financial performance.
The additional disclosure requirements would include information on decarbonisation, asset management, and quality of service.
"Local lines companies have a key role to play in supporting a low carbon future and enabling consumers to benefit from this fundamental change, and information disclosure is a key part of our regulatory toolkit," Burgess said.
"It improves transparency and accountability to consumers and ultimately leads to improved performance of the local lines companies, particularly with regard to ensuring appropriate investment in reliability and resilience at a price level that can be justified for the benefit of consumers.
"Constraints can cause quality concerns and limit the number of connections to the networks.
"We are also proposing that local lines companies provide new information on how they manage vegetation close to lines, along with information on the risk from trees that might fall onto lines causing damage."
Submissions on the draft decision paper close on 14 September with cross-submissions due by 5 October 2023.