Distributed Generation (DG) is a term that describes private generation of electricity and the ability to sell that electricity back to the National Grid. There are a number of DG options but the most common are solar panels and wind turbines.
Solar assessment tool
To find out whether solar electricity stacks up for you try out the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority’s (EECA) solar calculator. The tool provides an impartial assessment of the costs and benefits of solar for your house. The calculator was developed by the EPECentre, University of Canterbury.
What you need to know
Wanting to simply power the property your DG is installed on? Perhaps you’ve installed solar panels on your roof to supply electricity to your home? If this is the case, it does not need to be connected to the national grid, and will work simply to reduce your reliance on an electricity retailer.
If you do choose to connect your equipment to our network using distributed generation technology, you can sell any excess electricity generated through, for example your solar panels, back to your retailer. This could give you a credit on your power bill.
The regulations
Distributed generation must meet all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements and comply with all applicable safety standards. Our policies and procedures for the application, installation and connection of Distributed Generation are in accordance with the requirements of Part 6 of The Electricity Industry Participation Code 2010.
The requirements and process for installing distributed generation varies depending on the capacity of the system:
Small systems with capacity of 10 kilowatts or less (≤10kW)
Larger systems with capacity of more than 10 kilowatts (>10kW)
Congestion
Congestion occurs when localised oversupply of power into the network has the potential to create reversed power flows impacting safety and power quality.