16 Sep 2025
Transpower shared the results of its first Te Kanapu consultation, Imagining Aotearoa in 2050, today.
More than 100 people, primarily from industry and the energy sector, responded to the first of a series of consultations planned throughout 2025 and 2026 that are focused on designing a future grid blueprint for New Zealand. The future grid blueprint will guide investments in national electricity transmission infrastructure up to and beyond 2050, supporting New Zealand’s economic growth and net-zero aspirations.
John Clarke, Transpower Executive General Manager Future Grid, said he was pleased with the response to the first consultation.
“We’ve been really impressed by people’s willingness to share their views on how New Zealand can grow and thrive through the use of our natural energy resources,” he said.
In this first consultation, we asked people to think about what an electrified and thriving New Zealand might look like in 2050 and what the energy sector could do to support that future.
“Overall, people are telling us that accelerating growth is the most important factor for a healthy New Zealand economy out to 2050, with affordability and cost of living coming second,” Mr Clarke said.
“They see economic growth coming from a focus on secure, sustainable and affordable energy, energy independence and productivity gains alongside an increase in investment and the adoption of new technologies.”
We also clearly heard that an enduring bipartisan approach to addressing the future, long-term planning and decision-making and streamlined regulations are needed.
Now we’ll use that information to directly inform the next steps in our work – the development of possible future scenarios for a growing, thriving and net-zero Aotearoa in 2050. Future scenarios help us to consider how the grid will need to develop to enable or respond to different possible futures.
“We must collaborate with our stakeholders on their goals and ambitions, be insightful and plan ahead to enable our energy future,” Mr Clarke said.
“It takes a long time to build infrastructure – we need to understand what we need to be doing now to ensure the grid will support New Zealand to be successful and to grow in the future.”
You can read the summary of survey responses and consultation document and share your views through our online survey.
Our Te Kanapu work programme can be found here.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Transpower’s Communications team on 021 195 8613 or [email protected].