This page is about a bill. That means that it's not the law yet, but some people want it to be the law. It could change quickly, and some of the information is just a draft.

Offshore Renewable Energy Bill

Administration and enforcement - Enforcement - Pecuniary penalties

160: Maximum pecuniary penalty

You could also call this:

"Biggest fine you can get for breaking offshore energy rules"

Illustration for Offshore Renewable Energy Bill

If you break the rules in the proposed Offshore Renewable Energy Bill, you might have to pay a fine. The maximum fine you can get is $500,000 if you are an individual. If you are a company, the fine can be much higher.

If you are a company, the fine can be $10 million or more. It depends on how much it costs to fix the problem you caused. If the court can work out how much you gained from breaking the rules, the fine can be three times that amount.

The cost to fix the problem is called the remedial cost. This means the cost to the government or someone else to fix what you did wrong. You might have to pay a fine that is three times the remedial cost if the court can work out what that cost is.

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This page was last updated on 29 June 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS992349.

159: Reasonable mistake defence in pecuniary penalty proceedings, or

"Defending yourself in court if you made an honest mistake"

161: Considerations for court in determining amount of pecuniary penalty, or

"How a court decides the penalty amount when someone breaks the law"

Part 4Administration and enforcement
Enforcement: Pecuniary penalties

160Maximum pecuniary penalty

The maximum pecuniary penalty that a person can be ordered to pay is,—
in the case of an individual, $500,000; or
in the case of a body corporate, the greater of—
1. $10 million; and
2. either the amount referred to in subsection (1A)(a) or, if the remedial cost cannot be readily ascertained, the amount referred to in subsection (1A)(b).

For the purposes of subsection (1)(b)(ii), the amounts are as follows:
if the court is satisfied that the contravention resulted in a remedial cost that can be readily ascertained, 3 times the remedial cost; or
if the court is satisfied that the contravention occurred in the course of producing a commercial gain that can be readily ascertained, 3 times the value of any commercial gain resulting from the contravention.

In this section, remedial cost means a cost to the Crown or another person in order to remedy the effects of the contravention.