New Zealand Legislation: Acts
Acts are laws made by Parliament
Reprint as at 1 November 2010
| Public Act | 1998 No 88 |
| Date of assent | 8 July 1998 |
| Commencement | see section 1 |
Electricity Industry Reform Act 1998: repealed, on 1 November 2010, by section 165 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010 (2010 No 116).
Changes authorised by section 17C of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 have been made in this reprint.
A general outline of these changes is set out in the notes at the end of this reprint, together with other explanatory material about this reprint.
This Act is administered by the Ministry of Economic Development.
1 Short Title and commencement
Part 1
Separation of lines and supply—Preliminary provisions
4 Meaning of electricity lines business [Repealed]
5 Meaning of electricity supply business [Repealed]
6 Meaning of business A and business B
10 Meaning of equity return rights
11 Meaning of material influence
13 Meaning of agency [Repealed]
14 Substance matters, not form
15 Application to persons outside New Zealand
Part 2
Separation of lines and supply—Rules and exemptions
Connected generation and connected customers selling caps
17A Connected generation cap rule
17B Small or encouraged connected generation
17C Connected customers selling cap rule
Corporate separation and arm’s-length rules
17D Threshold for corporate separation and arm's-length rules
17E Corporate separation and arm’s-length rules imposed
Use-of-systems agreements rules for businesses with 5 MW or more of connected generation
17F Use-of-systems agreements rules for businesses with 5 MW or more of connected generation
17G Exemption for Transpower New Zealand Limited for purpose of deferring investment in national grid
18 20% aggregate cross-ownership prohibition [Repealed]
Scope of application of rules in this Part
19 Certain businesses and involvements to be disregarded
Application of ownership separation rules to trust-like interests
20 Non-specific interests rule
21 Responsibility for remedying contravention
[Repealed]
22 Compliance with ownership separation rules [Repealed]
23 Agreements and negotiations leading to separation [Repealed]
24 Corporate separation [Repealed]
25 Arms length rules [Repealed]
26 12 months' lead in time to full arms length [Repealed]
Interim exemptions, rules, and compliance options
[Repealed]
27 Purpose of sections [Repealed]
Exemptions for certain involvements
[Repealed]
28 Exemption for existing involvements until separation [Repealed]
29 Exemption for acquisitions of one person's cross-involvements [Repealed]
Ban on expanding cross-involvements
[Repealed]
30 Ban on expansion in cross-involvements [Repealed]
Options for persons wishing to expand
[Repealed]
31 Exemption for any involvement in single unseparated business [Repealed]
32 Exemption for certain Treaty-related transactions [Repealed]
33 Exemption for Highbank right of first refusal in Ngāi Tahu Treaty settlement [Repealed]
34 Exemption for companies with direct ownership [Repealed]
35 Other expansion option [Repealed]
Compliance process for existing 20% aggregates
[Repealed]
36 Compliance process for existing 20% aggregates [Repealed]
Mirror trust and mirror co-operative option
[Repealed]
37 Mirror trust option [Repealed]
38 Qualifying conditions on mirror trust option [Repealed]
39 Transfer of business to mirror trust [Repealed]
40 Beneficiaries of mirror trusts [Repealed]
41 Terms of trust deeds for mirror trusts [Repealed]
42 Mirror co-operatives [Repealed]
43 Exemption of mirror trusts from ownership separation rules [Repealed]
44 Exemption of mirror trusts from rule limiting expansion of control by trust-like agencies [Repealed]
45 Trusts that cease to be mirror trusts [Repealed]
No expansion of control by trust-like agencies in electricity supply
[Repealed]
46 No expansion of control by trust-like agencies in electricity supply [Repealed]
[Repealed]
46A Exemption for new generation from new renewable energy source [Repealed]
46B Electricity lines business to publicly notify acquisition or increase of distributed generation [Repealed]
Exemptions for generation commissioned after 20 May 2003 and for reserve energy
[Repealed]
46C Exemptions for generation commissioned after 20 May 2003 and for reserve energy [Repealed]
Part 3
Separation of lines and supply—Enforcement and penalties
50 Jurisdiction of District Courts
54 Court may order divestiture of assets or voting securities
55 Additional penalty for contravention involving commercial gain
56 Other powers to give directions, re-open agreements
56A Limits on defences and penalties for failure to publicly notify acquisition or increase of distributed generation [Repealed]
58 Application of Commerce Act 1986 and the Crown Entities Act 2004 provisions
Part 4
Separation of lines and supply—Taxation
[Repealed]
61 Mirror co-operatives [Repealed]
62 Mirror trusts [Repealed]
63 Consolidation rules modified generally for purposes of corporate ownership split and ownership split [Repealed]
64 Gifts not to form part of capital gain amounts [Repealed]
65 No stamp duty payable [Repealed]
66 Shares not acquired for resale [Repealed]
67 Definitions for tax sections [Repealed]
Part 5
Separation of lines and supply—Miscellaneous provisions
68 Duty not to defeat purposes of Parts 1 to 5
70A Disclosure as to electricity sold to connected customers within local network area
70B Directors must report compliance with arm’s-length rules
Matters relevant to implementation of Part 2
[Repealed]
71 Trust deeds [Repealed]
72 Beneficiaries of customer lines trusts [Repealed]
73 Shareholders of lines co-operatives [Repealed]
74 Power to make gifts [Repealed]
75 Application of Securities Act 1978 [Repealed]
76 Protection from other Acts [Repealed]
77 Member approvals, etc [Repealed]
78 Consultation requirements [Repealed]
79 Technical redundancy [Repealed]
82 Application of Commerce Act 1986
83 Not interconnected under Commerce Act 1986
84 Application of Energy Companies Act 1992 [Repealed]
85 Dealing with land held for public works [Repealed]
Part 6
Price restraint for line charges for domestic and rural consumers
88 Regulations relating to charges for line function services
89 Way in which price restraint may be imposed
90 Definition of domestic premises
92 Other Acts relating to price control not affected
Part 7
Amendments to Electricity Act 1992
[Repealed]
94 Regulations relating to information disclosure [Repealed]
95 Regulations [Repealed]
Part 8
Split of Electricity Corporation of New Zealand
[Repealed]
97 Interpretation [Repealed]
98 Directions by shareholding Ministers [Repealed]
99 Principal objective of ECNZ [Repealed]
100 Enactments amended [Repealed]
101 Amendment to Electricity Act 1992 [Repealed]
Schedule 2
Amendments consequential upon split of ECNZ
An Act to reform the electricity industry
