Upper South Island MCP
Transpower have notified us of their intention to plan a major capex project in the Upper South Island region.
This potential investment need has been identified by Transpower based on its demand forecasts. In order to meet grid reliability standards in the region investment may be required to address forecasted thermal capacity and voltage stability constraints.
On 6 July 2023, Transpower and the Commission agreed to a consultation programme, approval timeframe and approach to considering non-Transpower solutions. As Transpower develops the project, Transpower and the Commission will review the timeframes as necessary.
Following consultation with their stakeholders, Transpower has identified a staged approach as its preferred option. On 25 March 2025, Transpower sent us an updated notice of intention requesting a staged approach to the project.
On 15 December 2025, we published copies of Transpower's proposal documents for the Upper South Island Major Capex Proposal (USI MCP).
On 18 December 2025, we published our Draft decision on Transpower's Upper South Island MCP proposal. Between 23 February 2026 and 17 March 2026, we published submissions and cross-submissions received on the Draft decision on USI MCP. These documents can be found under the 'Documents' tab below.