How a new connection usually runs
Talk to an electrician first
Vector recommends talking to a registered electrician about your connection needs before you apply. They'll work out the size of supply you need, single or three phase, and where the point of supply will be.
Apply to the lines company
Most lines companies take applications online, usually from your electrician with you. On Powerco's network a homeowner or their electrician can use Powerco Connect, and on Unison's you apply together with your electrician.
Choose a retailer
Your retailer accepts the new connection and arranges the meter. On some networks, like Counties Energy's, the retailer also requests the inspection and livening.
Get your ICP number
Every connection has its own installation control point (ICP) number. The lines company issues it, and your retailer uses it to set up your account and meter.
Wiring, certificates and inspection
Your electrician installs the service cable and the wiring, then issues the certificates. A new service main is mains work, which is high-risk, so it's independently inspected and gets a Record of Inspection.
Livening
The final connection to the network is made by the lines company's approved contractor or livening agent. On Vector's network, your electrician can install the service cable up to the connection point, but a Vector-approved contractor or livening inspector makes the final connection.
How long it takes
Timing depends on the lines company, its queue and how complicated your site is. Vector says a simple connection usually takes around 6 to 8 weeks. Unison says to allow up to six weeks for a simple connection and up to twenty for a complex one, and Top Energy puts a straightforward connection at about 30 days, with complex jobs taking 4 to 6 months.
Queues build late in the year. Vector says new connections work submitted from 16 October 2026 is likely to be scheduled in 2027, and Powerco says requests submitted from 27 October are likely to be scheduled in the new year. If you're building, get the application in as soon as the electrician can size the supply.
Builder's supply, upgrades and other changes
The same process covers more than brand new homes. Lines companies handle converting a builder's temporary supply to permanent, increasing or reducing capacity, adding phases, moving the connection point and moving service mains underground.
Wellington Electricity says capacity changes and builder's supply conversions are requested through your retailer, while Orion's connection process covers capacity upgrades, including changing capacity to add an EV charger. Each lines company runs it its own way, which is why an electrician who regularly connects homes with your lines company saves time.
If the network doesn't reach your property yet, like a new rural section or subdivision, you'll need it extended first. Wellington Electricity quotes network extensions on request, and MainPower has a separate form for a new power supply where power doesn't reach the boundary.
Approved contractors and livening agents
Lots of people search for their lines company's approved contractors. Each lines company decides who may make the final connection to its network, and some go further: on Aurora Energy's network, a change to an existing connection starts with a registered electrician who registers the job with one of Aurora's Approved Network Contractors.
Your own electrician usually doesn't need to be on that list to wire the house. They work alongside the approved contractor, and on many networks they arrange the inspection and livening for you.
Finding your lines company, and the building consent
New Zealand has 29 lines companies. The ENA map at ena.org.nz finds yours from your address, with its phone number and website. If you're near a boundary, check with the lines companies on both sides.
On a consented build, the electrical certificate (an energy work certificate) goes in with the application for a code compliance certificate, so your builder will want copies too.
Your part, and the electrician's
You can
- Choose a retailer early and tell them the connection is coming.
- Give your electrician the site plan and a list of planned appliances, including any EV charger or heat pump.
- Keep the ICP number, application references and certificates together.
- Keep the meter position and trench line clear for livening day.
Leave to a licensed electrician
- Sizing the supply and completing the technical parts of the application.
- Installing the service cable, meter board and wiring.
- Issuing the certificates and arranging the inspection of the mains.
- Coordinating livening with the lines company's approved contractor.
Questions to ask your electrician
- Have you done connections on my lines company's network before?
- Who submits the application, you or me?
- What size of supply do you recommend, and why?
- Who's arranging the inspection and the livening?
- What's the current wait on this network?
If we were building
We'd bring the electrician in at the design stage, settle the supply size with every future appliance in mind, and get the application in the moment the plans are firm. Late in the year, we'd allow for the holiday slowdown and plan the builder's temporary supply around it.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.