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Gore, Southland

Electricians in GoreAn early-electric town with a river to watch.

We match Gore electrical jobs with one licence-checked local electrician who does that kind of work. Gore is on The Power Company's network, which PowerNet manages, and the 24/7 faults line is 0800 808 587.

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The giant brown trout statue and 'Welcome to Gore' sign in Gore.
Photo: Mr Bungle, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.5, cropped

One of New Zealand's first electric towns

Gore was the third town in New Zealand to install a generator and provide a public electricity supply, in 1894. That history doesn't date anyone's wiring, but the lines company does point to something older in local homes.

The Power Company notes there are many older multi-phase residential installations on its network. If your home has two or three phases coming in and nobody's sure why, that's worth an electrician's look before you add a heat pump or a charger. In older homes generally, rewireable fuses, no RCDs and tired cable are the usual reasons to upgrade.

What Gore's lines have been through

The Power Company, run by PowerNet

The Power Company lists Gore among its urban areas and takes power from the national grid at a Gore grid exit point. It's owned by the consumers connected to it, through the Southland Electric Power Supply Consumer Trust, and PowerNet manages the network.

The Mataura in flood

In February 2020 a state of emergency was declared in Southland as the Mataura River peaked at 2,500 cumecs at Gore on 5 February, and more than 2,400 people were evacuated from their homes in Gore.

The October 2025 storm

Gore recorded a gust of 124 km/h on 23 October 2025, its highest October gust since records began. PowerNet says hundreds of poles and kilometres of line were destroyed across its Southland and Clutha networks, much of it by falling trees.

Cold winters

NIWA says Gore averages 34 days a year below 0 °C, and The Power Company's network peak has historically been on winter evenings.

Your service line, your trees

PowerNet says you own the low voltage service lines on your property, including poles, cables and fuses, up to the isolating fuse at your boundary or the nearest pole, and you typically pay for repairs on your side.

Keep trees at least half a metre from those lines, PowerNet says, and have the trimming done by an experienced, qualified contractor. After October 2025, when falling trees did so much of the damage, that's not a job to put off. PowerNet plans to lobby central government for tree-related rule changes.

Flooded or storm-hit in Gore

  1. Is it just you?

    PowerNet suggests checking whether the neighbours' lights or the street lights are on. If they are, the fault may be on your property, such as a blown fuse.

  2. Lines down

    Treat them as live, keep at least 10 metres away and call 111. Then phone PowerNet on 0800 808 587, not by email.

  3. Water inside

    If floodwater has reached power points, the switchboard or appliances, leave them off and get a licensed electrician to test everything before it's switched back on.

Heating and rentals

The Southland Warm Homes Trust, backed by funders including The Power Company and Gore District Council, offers insulation and heating assessments and retrofits for Southland and West Otago homes. Any wiring for new heating is still a job for a licensed electrician.

At the 2023 Census, 24.79% of Gore District households didn't own their home or hold it in a family trust. Rentals must meet the healthy homes standards, and landlords can't do the electrical work themselves.

Where we'd start in Gore

In an older house, we'd have an electrician check the board and how many phases come in before adding any big winter heating. If you're near the Mataura, we'd ask them how high the board and power points sit, and keep trees well back from your service line.

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Questions

Straight answers.

Who do I call for a power cut in Gore?

PowerNet's 24/7 faults line, 0800 808 587. Its outage map only shows outages on key parts of the network, so a fault affecting a few homes may not appear there.

How do I find out about planned outages in Gore?

Your electricity retailer tells you in advance, PowerNet says. Keep your contact details up to date with them.

Is solar common in Gore?

Not yet. About 1.79% of connections on The Power Company's network had solar in January 2026, below the national 2.80%. If you're keen, PowerNet requires an application and final approval before anything is connected.

Ready for a sparky in Gore?

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Related help

Helpful next

Electricians in SouthlandPowerNet's faults line, the October 2025 storm, cold-climate jobs and house records across Southland.House rewiringSigns your wiring is past it, part or full rewires, and the certificates a rewire should come with.Three-phase power upgradesWhen three-phase power is worth it, how the lines company upgrade works, and the inspection that comes with it.Emergency electricians111, the lines company or an electrician? What to do first in an electrical emergency at home.Heat pump wiring and circuitsThe circuit, switchboard space and certificates behind a heat pump, and what the rental heating standard asks.Electricians in InvercargillInvercargill's underground network, PowerNet's faults line, frosty winters and the heating jobs that follow.

Where this information comes from

Rules change, so check with the EWRB, WorkSafe or Tenancy Services if something matters to your job. How we write and check these pages.

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