Glossary
Too much jargon? Let's break it down!
Term |
Definition |
|---|---|
| Capacity | Measured in amps (A) The maximum amount of electricity that a system can safely produce, carry, or handle |
| CAT1 / CAT2 Metering | Category 1 (CAT1): Standard metering for lower loads. Applicable to most homes and smaller businesses (100 amps and less) Category 2 (CAT2): Required for higher loads (101 amps or more), requires CTs |
| Certificate of Compliance (COC) | A legal document issued by a registered electrical inspector confirming that electrical work meets safety standards Required for new or altered wiring |
| Certificate of Verification (COV) | A legal document issued by a registered electrical inspector confirming that existing electrical installations meet current safety standards Required to reconnect electricity if the site has been disconnected for six months or more, ensuring the installation is still safe and compliant before power is restored |
| Contractor | A person or company hired to carry out work, such as installing meters or reconnecting your site |
| CTs (Current Transformers) | Devices used in higher capacity setups to safely reduce current so it can be measured accurately Required for CAT2 metering (101 amps or more). |
| Decommission | Permanently deactivating and removing an electricity supply Once done, a new connection is needed to restore power |
| Distribution | The delivery of electricity to you, the end consumer, via lower-voltage lines These lines are owned and operated by your local network |
| Electrical Work | Work done by a licensed electrician, such as changes to wiring |
| Electricity Authority | The government agency that regulates New Zealand’s electricity market It was established in 2010 under the Electricity Industry Act, replacing the Electricity Commission |
| Generation | The production of electricity (e.g., via wind, solar, hydro) |
| ICP Number | Stands for 'Installation Control Point' A unique identifier for your electricity connection. Found on your power bill and/or meter switchboard It is 15 characters long, with 2-5 characters near the end being letters (i.e., 0000123456RN12B) |
| Kilowatt (kW) | A unit of power, specifically 1,000 watts Measures the rate at which electrical energy is used or produced |
| Kilowatt-hour (kWh) | A measure of energy usage over time (e.g., a 1,000w (1kW) heater will use 1,000wh (1kWh) of energy in an hour) |
| Load | The amount of electricity being used by a customer or group of customers at any one given time |
| Medically Dependent | Referring to someone who relies on electricity to run critical medical equipment Their life could be threatened without electricity (e.g., CPAP machine, nebuliser) |
| Meter Equipment Provider (MEP) | The company responsible for installing, maintaining, and ensuring the accuracy of electricity meters They also manage meter communications and data collection Usually, they own the metering |
| National Electricity Database | A central system that stores and manages information about all electricity connections in New Zealand Officially called the 'Electricity Registry' Managed by the Electricity Authority |
| National Grid | The nationwide system of high-voltage power lines, substations, and equipment that transports electricity from generation assets to your local network Managed by Transpower |
|
Network and |
Owns and maintains the local electricity network that delivers the power to your site (e.g., Orion, Vector) |
| New Connection | The process of applying for a brand new electricity connection on site Required when a property has never had electricity, or the previous supply was permanently removed |
| Non-Half Hourly (NHH) | The most common type of electricity meter used in homes and small businesses It tracks your total electricity usage over time, similar to how a car’s odometer records distance The term 'Non Half-Hourly' comes from older meters that couldn’t record usage in time-based intervals. While many modern NHH meters can now capture half-hourly usage data, the name has stuck because they’re still billed based on cumulative usage rather than time-of-use pricing |
| Peak Demand | The maximum load during a specific period Networks plan for this to avoid overloads |
| Register | The part of an electricity meter that records how much electricity has been used Some meters have multiple registers (i.e., Night/Day) |
| Retailer | Sells electricity directly to you, the end customer (e.g., Meridian Energy) |
| Ripple Relay | A switch inside some meters that lets the network turn appliances on or off to manage demand Necessary to allow for network load control |
| Sensitive Equipment | Devices that can be affected by power cuts or voltage changes, like computers, medical devices, or security systems Surge protectors can help protect them |
| Smart Meter | A digital meter that records your electricity usage every half hour and sends it to us remotely each day |
| Tariff | How your electricity usage is recorded and billed. It defines your billable pricing structure (e.g., Night/Day tariff uses separate registers to track electricity used during the night and day, with each billed at a different rate on the same invoice) |
|
Corporate and Industrial (C&I) also known as Time-of-Use (TOU; ToU) |
These meters are designed to handle high energy loads and more complex usage patterns They record electricity usage every 30 minutes and usually transmit the data remotely. Billing is typically done in four-hour blocks Common for factories, supermarkets, and other high-usage consumers |
| Transmission | The transportation of electricity via the national grid The national grid is managed by Transpower |
| Unmetered Supply | A connection without a meter Usage is estimated based on the type of equipment and how long it runs, since usually this won't change Common for streetlights, traffic signals, or CCTV |