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We’re constantly advocating for changes to tree regulations. In 2024, lines companies spent over $67 million on vegetation management including pruning and felling trees that obstructed lines and infrastructure. This cost is making electricity more expensive for consumers. 

MBIE conducted a public review of these regulations in 2023. The Minister then announced changes in May 2024. However, these small changes will not help us to have more resilient electricity infrastructure when we face our next wild-weather event.  

On 29 April 2025, Minister Simon Watts announced further changes to tree regulations at our annual networking event. Key changes include: 

• Enabling lines companies to assess hazardous trees near lines and issue notices requiring that they are removed (we understand that the 'reasonable' costs of removal will be at the lines owner’s cost​).
• Reducing future risks by restricting new planting of trees within 24 metres of power lines so when these trees mature they won’t contact the lines if they fall (doesn't apply to existing forestry land).
• Removing the requirement for EDBs to publish regulatory information in local newspapers or provide written notice to consumers (expanding the scope of what EDBs are required to publish on the internet)​.
• Extending the GLZ ‘clear to the sky’ in non-urban areas​.
  
  

We're still waiting for the details on these changes. And we are still nervious that they will do nothing to keep prices down for lines companies — and therefore consumers. 

What we want is new laws that:

• Allow us better access to cut high-risk trees that can take out power to communities.
• Share the cost of maintaining trees. Last year, lines companies spent over $67 million managing vegetation. And that money all gets passed onto consumers' power bills.
• Differentiate between public tree owners and forestry tree owners. Forestry should have more of an onus to maintain trees that can pose a threat to everyone's power supply. 

It's simple really, we need a more common-sense approach. One that means fewer power outages and cheaper power bills.

On 29 October 2025, our Chief Executive, Tracey Kai talked to Lisa Owen on RNZ about the need for change. Listen to the 9-minute interview here.

Engagement is ongoing and we’ll keep you posted. 

A report commissioned by Electricity Networks Aotearoa has analysed the cost of working in the road corridor for lines companies. It shows that the cost of temporary traffic management per day has increased by around 208% from 2019 to 2024.

The report forecasts that the average cost per day for temporary traffic management is expected to rise from $785 in 2019, to $2,947 in 2026 — an increase of around 275% over the period. 

This report gives us a national benchmark for the cost that lines companies pay for temporary traffic management when working in the road corridor. ENA plans to repeat the report in 18-24 months to assess how the new approach to temporary traffic management is tracking. If costs continue to rise during this period, ENA will seek to work with the Government to maintain safety standards and push for further changes to the system.

The report was undertaken by Beca and it assessed the project costs of 17 lines companies over the last five years. The report is available on the ENA website here.

The Network Transformation Roadmap (NTR) was created in anticipation of the role that lines companies would play to enable the transition to a low carbon future.  

The NTR includes 19 actions. These are designed to assist lines companies to build for the new energy future. These actions are to be implemented over a ten-year period to 2030. 

With the rapidly changing electricity landscape here in Aotearoa, the roadmap needs to be kept up to date for it to be useful. It was originally published in 2019 and reviewed and updated again in 2022. The Future Networks Forum Steering Group has been developing proposals for key projects to take forward the strategic intent of the NTR. Once they are confirmed, we will engage with the sector again on this.

The relevant reports can be found below.