New Zealand sets 10 kW solar export limit
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- Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko updated its generation and storage connection rules, requiring all 29 lines companies to set a 10 kW default export limit for "straightforward, small-scale distributed generation" such as household solar and battery systems.
- Roughly 75,000 households with solar — over 14,700 of which also have batteries — have been capped at export levels below 10 kW, meaning networks at times drew on higher-cost electricity instead of cheaper rooftop generation, per Authority General Manager Tim Sparks.
- Lines companies may offer a dynamic or flexible export limit as an alternative to the fixed 10 kW, allowing them to flex above or below the threshold as local network conditions change rather than locking in a lower permanent cap.
- The rules require industry to develop a standardized assessment tool for setting export limits on larger-scale distributed generation (solar farms, wind, and other systems above 10 kW), creating a nationally consistent approach across the country's 29 lines companies.
- The 10 kW residential default takes effect in late April 2026, with staged changes continuing through mid-October 2026, forming the first part of stage two of the regulator's broader network connections project.
Why it matters: With about 75,000 solar households and 14,700+ battery households currently capped below 10 kW, the rule forces every lines company to at minimum unlock cheaper rooftop export — but the Authority itself concedes the 10 kW floor won't be feasible everywhere, and the rollout is staged from late April through mid-October 2026.
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