Electricity Generation
How New Zealand generates electricity
Where does New Zealand's electricity come from, and how is that changing? Which regions generate the most, and from which sources?
This page explores those questions with regional metered generation from the Electricity Authority and national statistics from MBIE. The layout follows the US Energy Data generation page so differences between the two systems are easier to see.
Same sections, same order as US Energy Data: Electricity Generation ↗, so the two can be read side by side. Where New Zealand data cannot support a chart, the slot stays and says why.
Electricity generation by region
How much electricity does each region generate? This map shows annual grid-connected generation by Electricity Authority network reporting region, in gigawatt-hours. Use the dropdown to pick a single source such as hydro or geothermal, and the other tabs to see how a region's output has changed over time and how regions rank.
Compared with the US: The US map is by state; ours is by the 40 lines-company regions the Electricity Authority uses for metering. Regions with no grid-scale plant show as no data. Rooftop solar is not metered at the grid and is not included.
Electricity generation by region
Annual grid-connected generation by EA network region, GWh, by source.
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Electricity generation per person
Per-person generation makes big and small regions comparable.
Chart not available for New Zealand
We do not have a population series aligned to Electricity Authority network reporting regions in this snapshot, so regional generation per capita cannot be computed. The regional map above and the national totals below are the closest substitutes.
Electricity generation by source
Which sources dominate in each region? The same regional map as above, but read source by source: pick hydro, geothermal, wind, gas or coal in the dropdown and scrub the year slider to watch plant come and go.
Electricity generation by region
Annual grid-connected generation by EA network region, GWh, by source.
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Electricity generation by source over time
How has the national mix changed since 1974? Hydro has always been the backbone; geothermal and wind grew from the 2000s while gas and coal fell back to a dry-year role.
Compared with the US: MBIE annual net generation by fuel, including cogeneration. The US chart is by state; this one is national.
Electricity generation by fuel
Net generation from hydro, geothermal, wind, solar, biomass and fossil fuels.
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Small- and utility-scale solar
Solar is the fastest-growing source. Most of it so far has been rooftop systems on homes and businesses; grid-scale solar farms only began contributing in the 2020s.
Compared with the US: MBIE estimates distributed small-scale generation from Electricity Authority connection data. Utility-scale is total solar minus that estimate.
Small- and utility-scale solar generation
Rooftop versus grid-scale solar, GWh.
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Monthly electricity generation by source
Annual figures hide the seasons. Hydro output follows inflows and lake levels; thermal plant fills the gap in dry winters. Drag the range handles to zoom into a few years.
Monthly electricity generation by source
Grid-connected generation each month, GWh.
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Installed generating capacity by source
Capacity is what could run at full output; generation is what actually ran. Wind and solar have lower capacity factors than geothermal, so their share of capacity is larger than their share of generation.
Installed capacity by plant type
Generation capacity at year end, MW.
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Capacity factors of power plants
How hard does each plant work? A capacity factor is annual output divided by what the plant could have produced running flat out all year. Geothermal runs near 90 percent; peakers and dry-year thermal plant sit far lower by design.
Compared with the US: Plants of 30 MW and above from EMI metered generation and dispatched plant capacity. The US chart is by fuel and state; ours is by plant.
Capacity factors of power plants
Annual output as a share of nameplate capacity, plants of 30 MW and above.
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Carbon intensity of electricity production
How much CO₂ equivalent is emitted for each kilowatt-hour generated? New Zealand's grid is among the cleaner ones; the number rises in dry years when thermal plant runs.
Compared with the US: National quarterly series only. The US chart maps intensity by state.
Carbon intensity of electricity generation
Grams of CO₂e per kWh generated, quarterly.
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Battery storage capacity
Grid batteries shift energy within the day and provide reserves.
Chart not available for New Zealand
MBIE and the Electricity Authority do not yet publish a battery storage capacity series in the tables this snapshot uses. Grid-scale batteries in New Zealand are still few (Rotohiko, Ruakākā and a handful of others), and the Authority's dispatched plant list does not separate them.
Also useful in New Zealand
Series without a direct slot on the US generation page: total national generation and distributed solar capacity by region.
Total electricity generation
Net national generation, GWh.
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Distributed solar capacity by region
Installed solar capacity from EMI, kW.
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