# Electrify Southland

> Volunteer community group helping households, farms and businesses in Southland (Murihiku), New Zealand, switch from fossil fuels to electricity. The Southland group in Rewiring Aotearoa's Electric Communities network. Convened by Invercargill energy engineer Nathan Surendran. Slogan: Electrifying Southland together.

Key facts (source: Rewiring Aotearoa, Electrifying Southland regional report v1.0, published 15 October 2026, https://www.rewiring.nz/regional-reports/southland):

- Southland households could save $310 million a year ($850,000 a day) on energy bills by electrifying homes and vehicles, with solar and batteries on 80% of homes.
- Average Southland home: about $7,700 a year off energy bills; $3,800 a year net after upfront costs and 5.5% interest; about $57,000 over 15 years. LPG heating/cooking and two petrol cars vs all-electric with two EVs, 9 kW solar and 10 kWh battery, 2026 prices.
- $1.3 billion net household savings 2026 to 2040 ($2 billion in bills).
- 119,000 fossil fuel machines in Southland homes: 99,400 petrol and diesel cars, 7,200 LPG heaters, 5,800 LPG water heaters, 6,100 LPG cooktops.
- 210,000 tonnes CO2e avoided a year; 1,500 new local jobs. Southland households spend about $550,000 a day on fossil fuels.
- Invercargill: $170 million a year, 820 jobs. Southland District: $93 million a year, 440 jobs. Gore: $46 million a year, 240 jobs.
- Per switch in Southland: flued LPG heater to heat pump $36,000 over 15 years incl. upfront; LPG instant to hot water heat pump $9,200; LPG to induction $1,900 in bills; petrol to electric medium SUV $12,000 net; 9 kW solar + 10 kWh battery $2,500 a year (about 12c/kWh financed vs 26c/kWh grid).

Farm resilience (source: Electrify Southland, Powering Forwards v3.0, February 2026, by Nathan Surendran, Schema Consulting Ltd):

- Dairy farm, 50 kW solar + 75 kWh battery vs 40 kVA diesel generator over 20 years, no grants: solar and battery won on NPV in 9 of 10 scenarios; about $220,000 cumulative net benefit in the base case (0% loan, 6% electricity inflation).
- 93% probability a standby diesel generator fails to start at least once in 20 years. Southland solar capacity factor modelled at 13% (national about 15%).

## Pages

- [Home](https://electrifysouthland.nz/): news, Southland numbers, vision, events, sign-up
- [Southland report summary](https://electrifysouthland.nz/southland-electrification-report/): key numbers, district table, assumptions and limits
- [Invercargill](https://electrifysouthland.nz/invercargill/), [Southland District](https://electrifysouthland.nz/southland-district/), [Gore](https://electrifysouthland.nz/gore/)
- [The case for electrification / electrify your home](https://electrifysouthland.nz/electrify): heat pumps, hot water, induction, EVs, solar, batteries, finance
- [Powering Forwards](https://poweringforwards.electrifysouthland.nz/): farm solar and batteries vs diesel ([PDF](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iGiM-SInpd2C-jXW0Sl-MgSSK3m8Y4b7/view), [calculator](https://farmcalc.electrifysouthland.nz/))
- [Guides and resources](https://electrifysouthland.nz/blog/)
  - [Home Electrification Guide](https://electrifysouthland.nz/blog/home-electrification-guide): A simple step-by-step guide for Southland homeowners: list your appliances, work out daily kWh, cut demand first, then size solar and batteries to what is left.
  - [Business Electrification Strategies](https://electrifysouthland.nz/blog/business-electrification-strategies): Where Southland businesses can get help to electrify: EECA co-funding, Great South, green business loans, and the practical first steps.
  - [Electric Vehicle Basics](https://electrifysouthland.nz/blog/electric-vehicle-basics): Where Southlanders can find reliable, official information on electric vehicles: costs, charging, road user charges, and where to charge around Invercargill, Gore and Te Anau.
- [News](https://electrifysouthland.nz/news/), [About](https://electrifysouthland.nz/about/), [Get involved](https://electrifysouthland.nz/get-involved/)

## Optional

- [Full text of this site for LLMs](https://electrifysouthland.nz/llms-full.txt)
- [Rewiring Aotearoa regional reports](https://www.rewiring.nz/regional-reports)
- [Electric Homes and Vehicles 2026](https://pages.rewiring.nz/electric-homes-and-vehicles-2026)
- Contact: nathan@schema.nz
- Last updated: 2026-10-20