PROJECTS

Alleged Anti-Competitive Conduct in Electricity Transmission and Distribution

The problem

Transpower, the operator of the national transmission grid in New Zealand, was sued for anti-competitive conduct. An energy company, Todd Power, wanted to pay network charges for one of its small power generation plants as though it were directly connected to the transmission grid rather than through the local distribution network. Todd’s request was refused by Transpower leading to Todd Power’s allegation that the refusal was anti-competitive conduct.

How we helped

Castalia provided expert testimony before the High Court of New Zealand which showed that Transpower had not abused its power and was not acting in an anti-competitive manner. To do so, we analyzed Transpower’s motivations and the effects of Transpower’s pricing model on the electricity generation market. Our analysis showed that the conduct that Transpower is alleged to have engaged in could not harm competition in any upstream or downstream market.

Impact

Transpower was not found to have acted anti-competitively.

The client

Transpower

Our team

Alex Sundakov

Alex Sundakov

Executive Director

How can we help you?

How can we help you?