Power-Quality Management in New Zealand

Power quality (PQ) is a major concern in the relatively small island electrical network of New Zealand. The potential influx of new technologies, such as electric vehicles, heat-pumps, light-emitting diode lighting, etc., could potentially cause electromagnetic-compatibility problems in the future. To manage the PQ into the future, a government-funded project entitled Power Quality (PQ) in Future Electricity Networks (NZ) was instigated. This project was co-funded by the Electricity Engineers' Association of NZ (EEA) and the main deliverable was PQ guidelines that EEA members could adopt in their grid connection codes. Other objectives were to influence device standards and identify mitigation techniques. This paper gives an overview of this project and presents some key findings.