The Shocking Truth about Electricity

• What is it
• How is it made
• Types of generators
• High and low voltage
• Mains power or batteries
• Facts and figures

The Supply Chain and Who is Who

• Who are the generators
• Who are the generators?
• Transmission, Transpower and its roles
• 29 Lines companies
  • Who owns them?
  • Why so many?
• ​38 retailers+
  • What’s a gentailer?

The Distribution Network

• Distribution vs. Transmission
• How are networks built
• Everyone is different
• Common performance measures

Markets and Financial Transactions

• Market size
• Where do the costs lie?
• What is the Wholesale Market and how does it work?
  • Ancillary services
• The system operator
• Spot prices and forward markets
• Who pays money to wh

Electricity Pricing

• Turbulent history of price setting and balancing
• Electricity Price Review
• Current pricing reform
  • Cost reflective pricing
  • TPM – what is it and how will it affect us?

The Customer

• Often forgotten
• What do we know about customers?
  • What do they want?
• Major categories
• Retail Competition
  • Churn/switching
• What are their rights
  • Contracts and obligations
• Who are their advocates?
  • Major Electricity Users Group
  • Consumer NZ
  • Utilities Disputes
  • Grey power

Regulation

• A regulated and competitive market
  • History of change/reform
  • The Code
• Electricity Authority (and the Electricity Commission)
• Commerce Commission
  • Price / Quality
  • Excess profit
• Utilities Disputes
• WorkSafe
• Other regulation

Government Overview

• An essential service becoming more essential
• Government policy (and promises)
• MBIE - the primary Government policy and monitoring agency
• The role of the politicians

The Energy Sector

• NZ – the lucky country
• Transport; heat and electricity
• Energy sectors
• Climate change and the way forward
• The third energy transition

Disruptive Technology

• Transitions – smooth or bumpy?
• The myths
• Electric Vehicles – the opportunity and the challenge
• Solar PV and battery systems – what’s really going on?

New Opportunities and Challenges

• Decarbonisation - the biggest change since electricity was first harnessed
• Electricity as a major mitigation of climate change
• The digital utility
• DERs
• NZ – what’s happening?
  • Net-Zero
  • The NZ battery project
  • Deindustrialisation
  • Transport and Heat markets progressively convert to renewable electricity
  • Hydrogen
  • Energy Hardship