Electricity Corporation of New Zealand

Formation

In the 1980s the New Zealand Electricity Department (NZED), a government department, controlled and operated almost all New Zealand electricity generation and operated the electricity transmission grid. The first phase of deregulation saw the New Zealand Government corporatise the NZED and form the state-owned enterprise ECNZ.

Division

In 1994, Transpower was separated from ECNZ and created as an SOE to own and operate the national grid. In 1996, ECNZ was split into two SOEs, ECNZ and Contact Energy, and on 1 April 1999 ECNZ was split into three electricity generation SOEs:

• Genesis Energy,
• Meridian Energy, and
• Mercury Energy (formerly Mighty River Power).

All three remain in existence, along with Contact Energy and Manawa Energy (formerly Trustpower, which was split into an electrical retailer business and a separate generation company (Manawa). The retail arm was sold to Mercury).

ECNZ was originally proposed to be wound up by 2009, but resolving the few remaining land title issues has taken years longer than originally expected.

References

References

1. "Selling electric power".
2. (22 December 2021). "Electricity Corporation of New Zealand Limited".
3. "ECNZ Annual Report for year ending 30 June 2015".
4. (2015). "Chronology of New Zealand Electricity Reform. Energy and Resources Branch, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment".
5. "2011-12 financial review of the Electricity Corporation of New Zealand Limited, Commerce Committee of the New Zealand Parliament".