How much time and cost is involved for a new connection?

If the application is to connect the electricity supply for a house or other straightforward installation, and suitable network is available, then you will need to undertake the following:

1. Engage an electrician for the work required to install the necessary electrical equipment from the building to the point of supply.
2. Contact an electricity retailer to arrange for the installation of metering and the creation of an account for your new connection.
3. When everything is ready to be livened, you can have your nominated retailer send us the new connection request on your behalf.  We will create a unique identification number for the connection and send one of our field staff to make the final connection of your property to the network.  This part of the process tends to take 2 to 4 working days to complete.

If there is no available point of supply at the boundary to your property, it is likely that we will need to carry out a small network extension.  You can make a request on this website for us to investigate the requirements to connect your supply, and if needed, provide you with a quote for the work to install any new network extension.

The customer contribution towards the infrastructure cost varies from project to project and is subject to regulation.  Our capital contributions policy can be found here.  In most cases a quote will be forwarded to you within 2 weeks.  

From the time that we receive payment, it generally takes 6 to 8 weeks to complete installing a new point of supply, to allow your new connection to go ahead.  For those jobs that are larger or more complex, this timeframe may be even longer.  We can discuss this further with you when confirming the scope of works.

Can I use my electrician for a new connection?

Only Wellington Electricity Approved Contractors can make connections or alterations to our networks.  Those contractors are familiar with the special safety requirements associated with the work and with our standards and procedures for any work on our networks.

Can I get temporary electricity while I'm building?

Yes.  Wellington Electricity treats a temporary builder's supply the same as any other new connection.  Often the electrician will install the temporary supply box on the section and arrange for a Wellington Electricity Approved Contractor to connect it to the network.  In many cases the temporary supply box is positioned close to the final location of the meter box on the house, so the cable that connects the temporary supply to the Wellington Electricity network can also be used to connect the finished house to the network.  This saves work when the house is completed and the temporary supply box is no longer required.

Am I responsible for any of the equipment that supplies power to my property?

The customer generally owns everything on their private property except for a few items such as meters and hot water relays, which are the responsibility of your electricity retailer.

This means that property owners are responsible for the maintenance and repair of the electrical lines and equipment on their property.  Wellington Electricity owns and manages the lines and equipment up to the point of supply, which is usually on the boundary of your property.  The point of supply is the fuse either at the top of the pole, or the black plastic boxes located on the property boundary or on the roadside that form a connection point joining the consumer's private underground service cable to Wellington Electricity’s underground network.

Because no two properties are the same, there are some variations to this ownership rule.

Customers can also help protect the network and the reliability of their supply by ensuring that trees and other vegetation on their property are well clear of power lines.  For trees on private property, Wellington Electricity takes responsibility for the first cut/ trim and after this the land owner/occupier is responsible for maintaining them.  For more information on keeping trees trimmed click here.

If I pay something towards a network upgrade, do I own it?

Wellington Electricity usually takes full ownership of all electricity assets in a legal road reserve, and any transformers, whether in road reserve or private property.  The road reserve is the land between the front boundaries of properties on either side of the street.  Although you may be required to pay something towards the cost of the network upgrade, you will not have any ownership of those assets.  This is an important point to remember if you are considering buying a property that does not already have electricity services provided to the boundary.

What happens when Wellington Electricity has assets located on private land?

A registered easement in favour of Wellington Electricity is required for any new network assets located on private land.  The easement shall be granted at no cost to Wellington Electricity.  A full survey of the easement area is required and the appropriate easement documentation is available through Wellington Electricity.  Older lines, poles, cables, substations or other network equipment installed on private land or within buildings before 1993 are protected under existing use rights in the Electricity Act 1992.

What is your policy for moving overhead lines underground?

The cost of moving overhead lines underground is considerable and the amount we are currently allowed to charge to recover the cost of maintaining the network of poles, wires and other equipment that distributes electricity to customers premises does not provide the funding required to undertake this work.

There are occasions when groups of customers who consider the poles and lines detract from the visual appearance of their neighbourhood get together and are willing to contribute to the cost of undergrounding a section of overhead lines.  In these situations we will work with you to discuss your requirements and provide a quote for the contribution that would be required to undertake the work.  Please note that other utility providers share our poles, for example for telecommunications, and that any undergrounding work would need to be co-ordinated with these providers and there may be additional costs incurred.

What is a point of connection?

Most residential connections will require a point of connection, where electricity flows out of our network into the customer's installation. Typically these will be a utility pole (owned by Wellington Electricity OR a telecommunications provider such as Chorus), a pillar (small black box) or a pit (usually covered by a round black cover). If none of these are present then a point of connection will be required to be built.