No address specified
Change address
Estimated usage

-- kWh / -- days

0508 226 672

Power Outages and Why They Happen

Power outages are also known as blackouts or power cuts. Luckily, there are seldom outage occurrences in New Zealand. They do happen, however, and it is useful to know about various types of outages and where to find live info from your power provider.

Power Outage Types

  • Brownout — the drop in voltage in the system. The main characteristic is the dimming of light, which may cause incorrect performance of electrical equipment.
  • Blackout — A total loss of power in your area. It may be the result of the damage in the power grid, anything from the power stations to the power lines. Depending on the extent of damage, this type of power outage can last from a few short minutes to a prolonged amount of time. Sometimes it can take months to restore access to power due to severe natural disasters that completely destroy the power grid system.
  • Permanent Fault — Power lines failure that cause a substantial loss of power. The fault needs to be cleared by technicians to restore normal access to power.

Cause of Power Outages

There is a number of reasons that can cause power outages, but most frequently, they happen due to external events: natural disasters and severe weather such as wind, storm, etc.; car accidents; wildlife; as well as planned outages by your power provider.

Speaking of planned outages, energy providers make sure to let their customers know about them in advance, and you can also always find live info on outages on their websites. Below is the list of useful links to power outage pages for each provider.

Outage Pages by Power Provider

Outage Pages by Power Network