1346 (2025). Scott Willis to the Minister for Energy

1346 (2025). Scott Willis to the Minister for Energy: Given the financial and operational challenges caused by the liquidation of SolarZero, what alternative plans does the government have to support middle New Zealand households in adopting solar energy and contributing to a resilient, low-emissions power system?

Hon Simon Watts: I am advised that Government has a range of work to support adoption of distributed energy resources like rooftop solar. In October 2024 the Government agreed to update more than 400 references to international standards in the Electricity and Gas Safety Regulations, to make it cheaper to install rooftop solar systems. I am further advised that consultation has recently been undertaken on increasing the regulated supply voltage range at which homes and businesses connect to electricity networks. This will enable more distributed energy generation, like rooftop solar installed in homes or businesses, to be put back into the network, without the need for upgrades that are significantly costly. Furthermore, the Energy Competition Taskforce is investigating several measures to support consumers to adopt rooftop solar. These measures are’ • requiring distributors to pay a rebate when consumers export electricity at peak times • requiring all retailers to offer time-of-use pricing • requiring retailers to better reward consumers for supplying power