Commerce Act 1986

Regulated goods or services - Electricity lines services - Application, overview, and interpretation

54C: Meaning of electricity lines services

You could also call this:

"What 'electricity lines services' means in New Zealand law"

Illustration for Commerce Act 1986

When you hear the term 'electricity lines services', it means the conveyance of electricity by line in New Zealand. This includes services performed by Transpower as system operator. You need to know what is meant by 'electricity lines services' to understand how it works. It is about how electricity is conveyed to you.

If you are conveying electricity, there are some cases where it is not considered 'electricity lines services'. You are not providing electricity lines services if you convey electricity just for your own use or for your associates. You are also not providing electricity lines services if you convey electricity from a generator to the national grid, or from the national grid to a generator.

There are more cases where conveying electricity is not considered 'electricity lines services'. You are not providing electricity lines services if you convey electricity by lines that are not connected to the national grid. You are also not providing electricity lines services if you convey electricity in competition with another supplier, or if you convey a small amount of electricity.

To understand these rules, you need to know what some words mean. The term 'associate' has the same meaning as in section 73 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010. The term 'consumer' has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Electricity Act 1992. The term 'national grid' has the same meaning as in section 5 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010. The term 'prescribed voltage electric line' means a line that can convey electricity at a certain voltage.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM1940014.


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Part 4Regulated goods or services
Electricity lines services: Application, overview, and interpretation

54CMeaning of electricity lines services

  1. In this subpart, unless the context otherwise requires, electricity lines services

  2. means the conveyance of electricity by line in New Zealand; and
    1. with respect to services performed by Transpower, includes services performed as system operator.
      1. However, none of the following are electricity lines services:

      2. conveying electricity solely for the supplier’s own consumption or for the consumption of the supplier’s associates:
        1. conveying electricity only from a generator to the national grid or from the national grid to a generator:
          1. conveying electricity (other than via the national grid) only from a generator to a local distribution network or from a local distribution network to a generator:
            1. conveying electricity by lines that are not connected, directly or indirectly, to the national grid:
              1. conveying electricity only by a line or lines that are mostly in competition with a line or lines operated by another supplier of electricity lines services that is not an associate of the person, provided that the competition is actual competition and not potential competition:
                1. conveying electricity if the total circuit length of all of the prescribed voltage electric lines provided by the supplier (or over which electricity is conveyed by the supplier, as the case may be) is less than 25 kilometres:
                  1. conveying electricity if the total amount of electricity conveyed to consumers by the supplier is less than 20 gigawatt hours per annum:
                    1. conveying electricity if the total number of consumers to whom the supplier conveys electricity is less than 500.
                      1. The prescribed voltage electric lines, the electricity conveyed, or the number of consumers to whom electricity is conveyed, when measured in relation to a supplier include, for the purposes of subsection (2)(f) to (h), the lines provided by, electricity conveyed by, or number of consumers of, any associate of the supplier.

                      2. In this section, unless the context otherwise requires,—

                        associate has the same meaning as in section 73 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010

                          consumer has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Electricity Act 1992

                            lines has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Electricity Act 1992

                              national grid has the same meaning as in section 5 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010

                                prescribed voltage electric line means a line that is capable of conveying electricity at a voltage equal to or greater than 3.3 kilovolts.

                                Notes
                                • Section 54C: inserted, on , by section 4 of the Commerce Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 70).
                                • Section 54C(1): substituted, on , by section 150(1) of the Electricity Industry Act 2010 (2010 No 116).
                                • Section 54C(4) associate: amended, on , by section 150(2) of the Electricity Industry Act 2010 (2010 No 116).
                                • Section 54C(4) national grid: amended, on , by section 150(3) of the Electricity Industry Act 2010 (2010 No 116).