The Commerce Commission has published a statement of preliminary issues relating to an application from Vector Limited, seeking clearance to acquire Arc Innovations Limited from Meridian Energy Limited.

The statement of preliminary issues outlines the key competition issues that the Commission currently considers will be important in deciding whether or not to grant clearance.

The Commission invites submissions from parties who consider that they have information relevant to the Commission’s consideration of this matter. Submissions can be sent to registrar@comcom.govt.nz with the reference Vector/Arc in the subject line of your email or to PO Box 2351, Wellington 6140 by close of business Friday 3 October 2014.

You can find the Statement of Preliminary Issues and the public version of the application on the Clearances Register.

Background

Vector Limited and Arc Innovations Limited are two of the main suppliers of advanced electricity metering services. The other main supplier is Metrix Limited, which is a subsidiary of Mighty River Power Limited.

Providing advanced electricity metering services involves supplying advanced meters (or smart meters) together with the necessary communication and information storage systems which enable electricity usage to be monitored and recorded remotely.