Switching trends

Report notes

1. Retail reports are released after the 10th business day of each month. The next scheduled release is due on 17/01/2026. The reports are built off a live system and the data is subject to change as registry events are processed (e.g. backdated corrections or withdrawn switches).

2. A switch occurs each time an ICP changes trader. These switches are recorded in the month they are initiated in the Registry (not completed). They are summed across the period the report covers or available as a monthly series. Switches that are subsequently withdrawn and bulk transfers of ICPs between traders that do not involve consumers actively switching are not included in these switch counts. Relative switching or switching rates calculate switches (filtered by switch type) as a percentage of the average number of active ICPs in the selected market segment and region during the period it is calculated for. Relative switching rates can, therefore, be summed for each switch type or retail entity and equate to the switch rate for all switches in the region and market segment. The market segment parameter should be used to investigate relative switching across different connection types.

3. Switch types are:

   • A ‘trader’ (TR) switch is the standard process for any ICP identifier with a maximum meter category of 2 where the customer at the connection has an existing contract with the trader (losing trader) recorded in the registry. This switch type includes ‘standard NHH’ (S) switches prior to Part 10 changes in the Code that came into effect in September 2013.
   • A ‘move in’ (MI) switch is the process used for any ICP identifier with a maximum meter category of 2 where the customer at the connection does not have a contract with the trader (losing trader) recorded in the registry. This switch type includes ‘standard move in NHH’ (SM) switches prior to Part 10 changes in the Code that came into effect in September 2013.
   • A ‘half hour’ (HH) switch is the process used for any ICP identifier with a meter category 3 and higher. This switch type includes ‘standard HHR’ (H), ‘move in HHR’ (HM), and switches from NHH to HHR and vice versa (NH and HN) prior to Part 10 changes in the Code that came into effect in September 2013.
   More information on switching is available in schedule 11.3 of the code.

4. Retail entities are brand, trader, and parent company. Some snapshot brand information is available at 31 December each year from 2011. Trader information is derived from the registry and parent company stats are a simple sum from trader data, including switches. Parent companies track ownership changes through time. Direct purchasers/generators in this report are traders with ICPs that are not active as retailers and directly purchase from, or sell to, the clearing manager. These companies are Alinta, Cold Storage Nelson, Lloyd Wensley, NZ Aluminium Smelters, NZ Steel, NZ Wind Farms, The NZ Refining Company, and Onekaka Energy.

5. Market segment breakdowns are available from September 2013 when ANZSIC codes were introduced into the registry in a field maintained by the trader. No breakdown is available at NSP level. Market segments are not mutually exclusive. Residential connections have no ANZSIC code. Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) connections are defined as those assigned meter categories 1 and 2 (low voltage up to 500A) with an ANZSIC code excluding those relating to central or local government and other utility services. Industrial connections have ANZSIC codes from A through E while commercial connections use ANZSIC codes F through Z. More information on ANZSIC codes is available at www.stats.govt.nz.

6. Region types are either network based or derived from standard statistical boundaries. Network-based regions are network supply points (NSPs), network reporting regions, and zones. Mappings are available in the NSP table which is available as a wholesale report. Other regions are derived from ICP location data and statistical boundaries (2013 census). ICPs without location data default to the location of their NSP. Main centres use Territorial Authority boundaries (City Councils) where Wellington includes Porirua City, Upper Hutt City, Lower Hutt City, and Wellington City. Many data reports allow for the selection ‘All regions’ (where the regions are not the data series) to get data for all regions in a single file. Regions are listed in a North to South ordering, except for NSPs which are listed alphabetically.