Net Energy Consumption

IBISWorld forecasts net energy consumption to rise by 1.1% in 2024-25, to 552.0 petajoules of consumption. Strong population and household numbers growth is expected to drive up retail demand for electricity, particularly during the colder winter months. Motor vehicle numbers are also expected to increase, pushing up energy consumption from oils. New Zealand’s GDP is also expected to expand in 2024-25. Increased domestic output will likely require heightened energy usage, further influencing the expected growth trend in net energy consumption.

Net energy consumption is strongly correlated with economic activity, due to the widespread use of energy across most industry processes. Prior to the pandemic, total energy consumption had increased over most of the past decade, driven by growth in the population, household consumption expenditure and government consumption expenditure. Advances in technology also increase the availability of products available for consumers, which require energy to manufacture and use. As a developed nation, New Zealand has high energy consumption per capita due to the prevalence of car ownership and common domestic usage of electric appliances. However, net energy consumption per capita has trended downwards over the past decade, from 118.6 gigajoules per capita in 2015-16 to an estimated 103.5 gigajoules per capita in 2024-25. This decline in per capita terms has occurred due to rising energy efficiency in New Zealand. Efficiency has increased through the uptake of insulation in homes and the implementation of waste heat capture systems in industrial processes.