The Green Party has written to Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Energy Minister Simeon Brown asking them to use the Crown’s controlling shareholding in the country’s three largest electricity generators to cap household power bill rises at the rate of inflation, after government figures showed nearly 200,000 households went without adequate heating last winter.
Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick and energy spokesperson Scott Willis sent the letter on Monday, ahead of what is expected to be one of the coldest stretches of the year. They want ministers to lean directly on the boards of Meridian, Genesis and Mercury, in which the Crown holds a 51 per cent stake, and stop further price rises landing on customers at the same time as the winter heating load peaks.
The Greens point to data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment showing 199,000 households reported being unable to keep their homes warm enough last year, a sharp rise from the 134,000 households recorded the previous year. The party argues that figure puts the lie to the idea that record dividends paid to the Crown shareholder are coming out of efficient operations rather than household budgets.
In a statement reported by RNZ Swarbrick said the ministers had the levers and should pull them. “We are calling on the ministers to use their influence, and their power, and every tool that is at their disposal so power companies do not raise their prices above inflation, and to stop households from being cut off this winter,” she said.
Scott Willis was more direct on the mechanics. He said cabinet ministers could write to the boards of the three gentailers within the week and instruct them to scale up their existing energy hardship programmes, rather than waiting for the next reporting cycle. “The ministers can write to the boards of Meridian, Genesis, and Mercury this week and require them to scale up their energy hardship programmes,” he said.
The letter sets out five specific asks. First, that ministers require the three Crown-controlled gentailers to cap residential price increases at the rate of inflation for the coming year. Second, that hardship and bill-smoothing programmes already in place be expanded so more customers can access them before the cold sets in. Third, that the government establish a low-interest loan scheme of around seven million dollars to help households pay for energy upgrades such as rooftop solar and insulation. Fourth, that funding be restored to the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, which has lost staff and programme money since 2024. Fifth, that retailers be barred from disconnecting households purely because they cannot afford to pay.
Disconnection has become a politically sharp issue. Industry data published by the Electricity Authority shows residential disconnections for non-payment have been climbing for three years running, with smaller retailers cutting customers off at higher rates than the big three. The Greens want a hard rule that no household with dependants can be cut off in the winter months without an offer of a payment plan.
The party also reached for an outside endorsement. Swarbrick noted that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development had recently flagged in its country review that dividends extracted from the New Zealand electricity sector were “well out of whack” with international comparisons, and that ordinary customers were carrying the cost of a market structure that rewards generators for tight supply.
Energy Minister Simeon Brown rejected the framing. In a response on Monday afternoon he said the coalition’s plan was to attack power prices from the supply side rather than by directing state-owned companies on how to price. He pointed to the fast-tracking of renewable generation consents under the Fast-track Approvals Act, the work under way on liquefied natural gas import infrastructure, and continued support for households through the Winter Energy Payment, which pays between $20 and $30 a week to beneficiaries and superannuitants over the colder months. He also argued that wage growth, not price controls, was the durable way to make power affordable.
Willis has not yet responded publicly. Her office said the letter would be considered alongside other pre-Budget representations and that the government remained focused on growth and supply. National’s position through the term has been that direct price controls would dampen investment in new generation at exactly the time more capacity is needed, particularly after this year’s gas squeeze exposed how thin the country’s dry-year cover has become.
Labour’s energy spokesperson welcomed parts of the Green proposal but stopped short of endorsing a statutory cap. Labour said the previous government had asked the same Crown-controlled companies to absorb increases in 2023 and that the results had been mixed at best, suggesting any new instruction would need to be backed by stronger reporting and consequences. Te Pāti Māori has previously argued that any disconnection ban should be permanent, not just seasonal.
The proposal lands at a politically charged moment. Households are already absorbing higher lines charges signed off by the Commerce Commission for the current regulatory period, and Consumer NZ has forecast residential power bills will rise by around five per cent on average this year, with significant regional variation. The fuel rationing debate of the past fortnight has also kept energy costs near the top of the political agenda.
For the Greens the political logic is straightforward. The party has been trying to differentiate itself from Labour on cost of living since the start of the year, and a fight over Crown-owned power companies turning a profit while customers go cold is the kind of ground they want to contest heading into the 2026 general election. Whether ministers move or not, the letter guarantees the issue stays in the news cycle for at least another week.
Voters who want to see where each party stands on energy affordability and other cost-of-living measures can compare positions side by side using the Newswire voting tool ahead of the 2026 general election.
What do you think, should the Crown direct Meridian, Genesis and Mercury to cap price rises at inflation this winter, or does that risk choking off the investment in new generation the country actually needs? Leave a comment below and join the conversation.
This article was written by AI, briefed to report the facts, hopefully without some of the bias people bring to the job 🙂
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