Materiality is an assessment of how the activities of a business impact society, the environment, specific stakeholders and the finances of the business itself. That business may have caused these impacts, contributed to them or have links to the impacts.
Meridian is committed to delivering on our purpose of clean energy for a fairer and healthier world. Our strategy for achieving this is to expertly navigate the energy transition for Aotearoa New Zealand. We also recognise that it matters how we manage the impacts associated with our operations, development practices and supply chain.
To do this, Meridian considers both impact materiality (society, environment and stakeholders) and financial impact (how they do or may impact our bottom line). This is known as double materiality.
Closely related material impacts are then grouped into material topics.
Meridian reports on our material impacts and topics as part of our annual Integrated Report. We do this based on the updated 2021 Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. Our material topics are also reflected in our business strategy and risk management approach.
We measure our material impacts using a mix of internal and external stakeholder engagement, together with consideration of:
We alternate between what we call review years and reassessment years.
Review years involve an internal process which considers only those material impacts reported in the previous year. The focus is on reviewing and rescoring the significance of existing impacts based on any changes in our operating or sustainability contexts. To do this we conduct a survey for each individual impact, completed by a range of internal subject matter, financial and risk experts.
We assess the significance of each impact by scoring its severity and likelihood. For severity, we consider the scale (how grave the impact is), scope (how widespread it is) and each impact’s irremediable character (how hard it is to put the harm right). Potential impacts are considered against the likelihood of the impact occurring. In addition, we consider the potential financial impact on Meridian over time.
Reassessment years involve the same internal process, together with external stakeholder engagement and consideration of new impacts. FY25 was our first reassessment year and exploration of new impacts involved a three-step approach.
We began by reviewing our business strategy and Detailed Enterprise and Emerging Risk report to explore whether there were initiatives or risks, including those arising from grievance mechanisms, that might suggest additional impacts. We then captured stakeholder feedback through our Stakeholder Research Project (delivered by Kantar) and engaged a sustainability consultancy to conduct a desktop study of emerging trends and potential impacts in New Zealand business, the global electricity industry and materiality best practice.
Finally, we held a facilitated workshop with internal subject matter experts to review the potential impacts gathered from the above steps, and to consider others, before agreeing which impacts should be carried forward into the impact assessment process.
One new impact was added in FY25 as a result of this work – ‘supporting companies to increase renewable generation through partnerships and offtake agreements’ – reflecting recent innovations in our approach to securing new renewable energy.
Scoring of material impacts then involved two parallel processes: a survey of internal subject matter experts and use of the Stakeholder Research Project to capture the feedback of external stakeholder and mana whenua through 101 interviews and 98 survey responses.
You can read more about the stakeholder feedback captured in FY25, and how this was assessed, in Kantar’s External Stakeholder Feedback Report
A full list of material impact and topics, their related targets and progress against targets can be found in the 'Our Material Impacts' section of our most recent Integrated Report (pp 68-80).
Our top three material topics for FY25 were:
| Material topic | Renewable energy generation | Ngā whakaaweawe o Te Ao Turoa – impacts on the natural world | Affordability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category of issue | Climate Transition & Physical Risks | Biodiversity | Product / Service Quality & Safety |
| Nature of material topic | Positive | Combined positive and negative | Positive |
| Business Case (Why this matters) |
This is a core part of our business and is key to our financial success, with generation revenue of $2.3b in FY25. Meridian generates around one-third of all New Zealand’s electricity – all from renewable sources – and electrification is a catalyst for New Zealand to achieve a net-zero economy. To maintain our business strength and drive further decarbonisation, Meridian is also investing heavily in new renewable generation assets, while supporting other companies to do the same through project partnerships and electricity offtake agreements. These initiatives also strengthen our ability to supply renewable electricity to our retail customers. |
The construction of our hydro assets, in particular, had significant environmental and cultural impacts. These assets account for 80% of our total electricity generation, making them critical to our business. As a result, taking steps to maintain water quality and protect our social licence to operate – by enhancing the natural environment and engaging with stakeholders – is essential to the sustainability of our business. |
As a retailer-generator, the sustainability of our business relies on our ability to make electricity affordable for households and business customers. Doing so makes our retail business sustainable. It also has a direct impact on our social licence to operate. |
| Type of Impact | Revenue | Risk | Opportunity |
| Related Material Impacts and Business Strategies | Increasing Renewable Generation: Refer to p70 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report Generating Renewable Energy: Refer to p70 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report Supporting Third-Party Generation: Refer to p78 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report |
Cultural Wellbeing: Refer to pp71–72 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report River Quality: Refer to p72 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report Natural Ecosystems: Refer to p76 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report |
Energy Affordability: Refer to p77 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report Energy Wellbeing: Refer to p78 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report |
| Targets and Progress (GRI indicators) |
7 new construction projects underway by 2030 - On track (See p70 of our Integrated Annual Report) Maintain generation market share of at least 30% in FY25 - Achieved (See p70 of our Integrated Annual Report) No formal target for third-party generation, but opportunities will be considered - Signed agreements with Harmony Energy and Nova for solar farms |
By FY29, achieve tangible outcomes from our kawenata with Ngāi Tahu - On track (see pp71-72 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report) Zero significant instances of environmental non-compliance in 2025- Achieved (See p72 of our Integrated Annual Report) By FY30, grow Forever Forests programme to align with residual emission - On track (see p37 of our FY25 Climate Related Disclosure TO2) |
20,000 residential customers on demand flex product by end of FY26 - Partially achieved (see p77 of our FY25 Integrated Annual Report and p26 of our Climate Related Disclosure TO1) Support 5,000 households in energy hardship by June 2028 - On track (See p78 of our Integrated Annual Report) |
Meridian’s material topics are reflected in our risk management approach. We review our enterprise risks every six months, new and emerging risks every quarter and ESG risks (including new ones arising from material impacts assessment) at least annually. A key part of these reviews is to ensure appropriate mitigation measures are in place to deal with those risks.
In assessing risk related to our material topics we consider their potential impact on our business across the following risk categories:
Learn more about our risk management approach.
As part of our materiality approach, Meridian’s materiality analysis identifies the most significant positive/negative impacts on external stakeholders associated with our company’s business operations, products/services and/or our supply chain.
The two topics that are most important to our stakeholders for the reporting period ending 30 June 2025 are:
| Material Topic | Increasing renewable energy generation | Ngā whakaaweawe o Te Ao Turoa – impacts on the natural world |
|---|---|---|
| Category of external impact | Energy | Sustainable products & services |
| Nature of material topic | Positive | Combined positive and negative |
| Area of value chain responsible for external impact | Products and services | Operations, Products/Services |
| Impact areas evaluated | Customers, society, environment | Society, environment |
| Why the Topic is relevant to external stakeholders | Our generation of 100% renewable energy enables customers to decarbonise their operations, access affordable and reliable electricity, and underpins New Zealand’s economy. By developing new generation assets and helping other companies do the same, we will be able to offer these benefits on a much greater scale. This growth is also key to addressing climate change and New Zealand’s transition to a net-zero economy. |
The construction of our generation assets – particularly our South Island hydro schemes – has had a historical and ongoing negative impact on the natural world and Māori communities and cultural values through diversion of rivers and reduced river flows, including an impact on fish populations, and a net negative impact on land-based ecosystems. |
| Related Impacts | Increasing Renewable Generation Generating Renewable Energy Supporting Third-Party Generation |
Cultural Wellbeing River Quality Natural Ecosystems |
| Metrics used to measure the output of our business activity | 3TWh new generation and 200 MW grid-scale battery storage by 2030 | 0 significant instances of non-compliance |
| Impact valuation | Access to product/service with positive impact provided. Description: MWh added to NZ energy system |
Environmental value lost/gained Description: Water quality or land-based impacts, or biodiversity loss |
| Quantitative impact metric | MWh added to NZ’s electricity system | Number of significant environmental breaches |
Tackling Zero is Meridian’s quarterly newsletter for people whose roles or studies are focused on sustainability, or for whom this is an area of interest. Each issue will offer Meridian’s insights into a topical sustainability issue, as well as stories on how we, our customers and supply chain partners are tackling sustainability. It also includes links to recent Meridian disclosures such as new policies and reports.