Wellington, Dec 9 NZPA - Todd Energy and business lobby groups are welcoming the Government's electricity sector reforms, while others took time to think about it.

"The overall package is bold, innovative, necessary and will generate change," Todd Energy managing director Richard Tweedie told NZPA.

He said anti-competitive conduct by lines companies was the problem before the so-called Bradford reforms in 1998 and lines companies were now being let back into other areas of business but under tight controls.

The Bradford reforms split the state-owned Electricity Corp of New Zealand into three state-owned enterprises, Genesis, Mighty River Power and Meridian, and separated line and energy businesses. Earlier in 1996, Contact Energy was split out of ECNZ and a wholesale electricity market established. Contact Energy was then privatised in 1999.

Mr Tweedie was not a great supporter of a move today to require energy retailers to make payments to consumers in the event of power cuts and energy conservative campaigns in a dry year but could live with it. The big areas the Government addressed were increasing the depth of the wholesale electricity hedge market and the transferring of assets between state-owned enterprises.

"Too many things in this sector have been at the margins and flaky and caught by lobbyists," Mr Tweedie said.

He said the reform package announced today by Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee had gone through a good process.

"I think the minister has stamped some leadership on the sector," he said.

Todd Energy is privately owned and is vertically integrated, operating from exploration through to retailing in a range of energy products.

"The hedge market needed something serious to happen. He's done something there. If it doesn't work he will do something further," Mr Tweedie said.

Genesis Energy today said it supported all measures designed to improve competition in the electricity marketplace but it would not be commenting further.

Contact Energy is not commenting while it considers the announcement it said it did not have advance information on.

The Northern Employers and Manufacturers Association chief executive Alasdair Thompson said business and consumers should be better off.

"We are pleased the Government has adopted many of our recommendations for the review," Mr Thompson said.

He applauded measures aimed at eliminating undue influence in the electricity market by generators and retailers.

"The liquid hedge market for electricity is sorely needed though a real challenge for the industry," Mr Thompson said.

He also congratulated the Government on resisting the temptation to regulate when consumers switched over to a new supplier.

Business New Zealand chief executive Phil O'Reilly said abolishing the reserve scheme was a step toward a more efficient system.

"Market features such as the reserve energy scheme have hindered, not helped achieving security," he said. He said more information was needed before a judgment could be made on the overall changes, including the proposal for mandatory hedging, but steps so far outlined were in the right direction. N