Powerco is the largest dual-energy distribution company in New Zealand by length, and is one of only two dual-energy (electricity and gas) distributors in the country.

Its networks are located in the North Island of New Zealand.

Powerco is owned by Australian companies Queensland Investment Corporation and AMP Limited.^[1]

Business

Powerco is a dual-energy distributor. Its role is to bring the gas and electricity delivered by the transmission networks Transpower (for electricity) and Firstgas (for gas) from the gas fields and power stations where it's generated, through its distribution networks, to customers.

Powerco owns and operates 28,935km of electricity lines and cables, and 6,227km of gas pipes. Over 900,000 customers are connected to its networks across 345,000 individual electricity connections and 112,000 individual gas connections.

Its electricity network covers:

• Coromandel to South Waikato
• Bay of Plenty: Tauranga and Mount Maunganui
• Taranaki
• Whanganui and Rangitīkei
• Manawatū
• Wairarapa

Its gas network covers:

• Taranaki
• Hawke's Bay
• Manawatū
• Porirua and Hutt Valley
• Wellington

Key dates

• April 1993 - New Plymouth Energy (the electricity division of the New Plymouth District Council) merges with Taranaki Electricity (former Taranaki Electric Power Board) to become Taranaki Energy Limited.^[2]
• 1994 - Taranaki Energy acquired the Hawera Gas Company.^[2]
• October 1995 - Taranaki Energy Limited merges with Wanganui-based Powerco (the former Wanganui Electric Power Board) to become Powerco Limited.^[2]
• September 1997 - Powerco acquires Hawera based Egmont Electricity.^[2]
• April 1998 - Government pass Electricity Industry Reform Act. PowerCo decided to become a "network business" (or lines company), and the following changes are made:
  • Electricity Retail Business (customer base) sold to Genesis Power
  • Gas Retail Business sold to Natural Gas Corporation
  • Natural Gas Corporation's Taranaki gas networks sold to Powerco
  • Powerco's five hydro power stations sold to TrustPower
  • Powerco purchases Wairarapa Electricity's network business (formerly part of the Wairarapa Electric Power Board)
• August 2000 - Powerco merged with CentralPower (itself formed by the merger of CentralPower (for former Manawatu-Oroua Power Board) and ElectroPower, the former electricity division of Palmerston North City Council).^[2]
• June 2001 - Powerco purchases the Hutt Valley and Porirua gas networks from AGL.^[3]
• February 2002 - Powerco purchases the electricity assets of United Networks Limited in Tauranga, Eastern and Southern Waikato, Thames and Coromandel, plus gas networks in Wellington, Horowhenua, Manawatū and Hawke's Bay.^[4]
• 2004 - Powerco purchased Siemens Energy Services' Tauranga based contracting division
• November 2005 - Powerco sold its New Zealand field services contracting business to Tenix Alliance
• 2008 - Divestment of Powerco Australia Group (Tasmania gas distribution) to Babcock & Brown Infrastructure

Electricity network statistics

Gas network statistics