Constant change

The pace of change in the electricity industry continues unabated.  Challenges facing the industry include changing regulation and the need to ensure security of supply.  We have the specific experience and intellectual capital to help clients meet the challenges and leverage the opportunities the electricity industry presents.

Clients and services

Buddle Findlay acts for a number of major players in the electricity industry including the regulator, generators, retailers, lines companies and financiers.  We advise on a wide range of issues including mergers and acquisitions, regulatory matters, competition law, project and corporate finance, hedges, resource management, construction, wholesale market rules, connection arrangements, land issues and litigation.

Recent work

  • Advising the Electricity Commission on its major transmission investment decisions
  • Representing the Electricity Commission in Court in successfully defending judicial reviews of the Commission’s decisions on the North Island Grid Upgrade (High Court) and the Otahuhu Substation Diversity Proposal (High Court and Court of Appeal)
  • Advising the Electricity Commission on the development of a transmission rules for the disclosure of information about electricity hedge contracts
  • Developing for the Electricity Commission the “transmission benchmark agreement”, a regulated default electricity transmission agreement for connection to the grid, rules for the provision of interconnection services by the national grid owner, and a complementary rules-based framework for taking transmission assets out of service
  • Advising the Electricity Commission on its long-term power purchase agreement with the government in respect of the Whirinaki dry year reserve generation station
  • Developing model contracts for the Electricity Commission for the electricity supply chain (transmission, distribution and retail)
  • Advising Contact Energy on generation, retail, and gas including contractual issues, Commerce Act issues, corporate governance, finance, RMA, Public Works Act, Electricity Act and other issues
  • Acting for Contact Energy on its major New Zealand power station developments including Whirinaki ‘dry year reserve’ power station, Wairakei binary plant and borefield pipeline re-cladding project, Te Mihi geothermal power station, Tauhara II Geothermal Development Project, Hauāuru Mā Raki Wind Farm and the Waitahora Wind Farm
  • Advising Contact Energy on commercial contracts for wind generation sites with a total capacity of up to 700MW and other generation development projects
  • Preparing submissions for clients on the Electricity Industry Bill 2009
  • Advising Ormat Systems on geothermal electricity generation projects in New Zealand
  • Advising Vector on the sale of its Wellington network
  • Advising Vector on its acquisition of UnitedNetwork’s gas and electricity networks including the NZ$3b bank financing and NZ$350m capital bonds issue
  • Advising Alliant Energy International on its investments in TrustPower
  • Acting for TrustPower on environmental and planning consents for a wind farm project
  • Advising Westpower on connection agreements and resource management, Public Works Act and Electricity Act issues
  • Advising a number of industry bodies including the Electricity Commission, Gas Industry Steering Committee, Electricity Complaints Commission and the Electricity Networks Association on development of industry regulation and compliance
  • Advising the New Zealand Wind Energy Association on various resource management planning matters
  • Advising on structuring complex, one-off electricity hedge contracts
  • Advising on the Electricity Governance Rules
  • Advising on the structuring and ownership of assets under cogeneration agreements
  • Acting for banks providing project financing for various electricity generation projects

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