Under subpart 9 of Part 4 of the Commerce Act 1986 (the Act), suppliers of electricity lines services are subject to information disclosure regulation.  Electricity lines services are defined in section 54C of the Act.  Electricity lines services are supplied by electricity distribution businesses (EDBs) and Transpower New Zealand Limited (Transpower).

The Commission is required to make a determination specifying how information disclosure regulation applies to each EDB and Transpower “as soon as practicable” after 1 April 2009.  The Electricity Distribution (Information Disclosure) Requirements 2008 and the Electricity Information Disclosure Requirements 2004 continue to apply until the determination takes effect.

The Electricity Distribution (Information Disclosure) Requirements 2008 were gazetted on 31 October 2008.  They relate primarily to Electricity Distribution Businesses; Transpower continues to be regulated under the Electricity Information Disclosure Requirements 2004.  Some provisions of the previous Electricity Information Disclosure Requirements 2004 remain applicable to Electricity Distribution businesses, through transitional provisions incorporated in Part 4 of the Electricity Distribution (Information Disclosure) Requirements 2008.

Under the current requirements, suppliers are required to disclose certain specified information relevant to their performance (such as financial statements, prices and quality performance measures), including forward-looking information (such as forecasts and asset management plans).

The purpose of this form of regulation is to ensure that sufficient information is readily available to interested persons to assess whether the purpose of Part 4 is being met.