Huia Burt: Electric Kiwi CEO on sector disappointed with government's energy reform

Disappointment the Government's energy reforms haven't prioritised keeping electricity prices down.

Changes include allowing Crown-controlled gentailers more government capital for projects, plans for a new gas import terminal and giving the Electricity Authority more power.

Electric Kiwi CEO Huia Burt told Ryan Bridge this could result in wholesale prices reducing by about 2% per annum.

She says that amounts to a few dollars off a power bill, but for a bold reform, we'd be talking hundreds of dollars less per year.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Disappointing, a damp squib, a real concern. This is what
the SECT is saying about yesterday's big energy announcement. The
big four gent tailor stock price shot up when the
market's opened. But what about the little guys who are
you Berts with electric key with the chief executive, who
are good.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Morning, good morning?

Speaker 1 (00:14):
At most all going to plan we'll be saving what
a few bucks off of four hundred dollars a month
power bill?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah, Well, one of the key numbers that came out
yesterday was that there was potential for the wholesale energy
prices to come down by around two percent per annum
with the reforms that were announced, And that really does
amount to a few dollars off your power bill, whereas

(00:48):
bold reform would be talking about hundreds of dollars per year.
And that's just what's so disappointing for households and businesses.

Speaker 1 (00:56):
The big problem is the new generation, right, getting these
companies to invest in new generation, and they've kind of
trying to address that by the government you getting involved,
But how do you explain contact, which is completely privately owned,
built more generation and faster than the partially state owned ones.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
Well, it comes down to incentives really, and you know,
each of these each of these companies, they've got government ownership,
and they're really incentivized to you know, pay out those
those good steadies every year, and Contact does as well.

(01:42):
But the most commercially rational thing for these companies to
do is really to keep the market, you know, relatively undersupplied.
Because they've got market power, they can keep competition out,
prices can remain high, and then really that's the best

(02:02):
way for them to operate. So this incremental reform yesterday
that was beneficial to the share price of those companies
because it was saying, hey, it's actually the stattus quo.
Nothing's going to change here. You know, still record profits,
still lots of dividends, and you know, unfortunately not the

(02:23):
affordable abundance energy future that New Zealand needs.

Speaker 1 (02:27):
Who we appreciate your time. Who are you Bert? Who's
the electric key? We ceoed? For more from early edition
with Ryan Bridge. Listen live to News Talks at b
from five am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.