Dunedin City Holdings Limited (DCHL) today announced that Steve Thompson will step down as Chair of Aurora Energy Limited, with his final day in the role being 30 September 2026. Mr Thompson has chaired Aurora for ten years, a period over which the business has been fundamentally transformed from one facing significant operational and reputational challenges into a regulated network that is widely respected and recognised as a leader in the New Zealand electricity distribution sector.

DCHL Chair Tim Loan said Mr Thompson's contribution to Aurora, to the wider Dunedin City Council group, and to the communities Aurora serves, had been exceptional.

“Steve has steered Aurora through one of the most consequential transitions of any infrastructure business in New Zealand. He inherited a network and an organisation under intense scrutiny, and over a decade has overseen its rebuild - physically, operationally, financially, and culturally. The Aurora of 2026 is a profoundly different company to the Aurora of 2016, and Steve's leadership is at the heart of that change.”

A decade of transformation

Highlights of Mr Thompson's tenure include:

• Overseeing the structural, governance and management separation from Delta Utility Services in 2017, establishing Aurora as a standalone, independently governed and managed network business. This separation enabled clear accountability for network performance, sharper regulatory and customer focus, a dedicated executive team and board mandate, and the operating model platform on which Aurora's subsequent turnaround, Customised Price-Quality Path (CPP) investment programme and sector-leading service delivery model have been built.

• Securing and delivering the Customised Price-Quality Path (CPP) approved by the Commerce Commission – enabling more than $600 million of catch-up and renewal investment across the Dunedin, Central Otago and Queenstown-Lakes networks.

• A step-change in network reliability and resilience, with sustained improvement in System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI) and System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) performance and Aurora moving up the Electricity Distribution Business (EDB) sector benchmarks.

• A demonstrably stronger health and safety culture, with measurable reductions in serious harm risk for Aurora's people, contractor partners and the public, and a maturing officer-level governance approach to health and safety at work obligations.

• Rebuilding stakeholder trust with the Commerce Commission, Electricity Authority, customers, iwi partners, local government, and the wider sector — moving Aurora from a position of regulatory scrutiny to one of constructive sector leadership.

• Strong financial stewardship, rebuilding the balance sheet while positioning the business to make sustainable returns to DCHL and, ultimately, the people of Dunedin.

• Positioning Aurora for the energy transition, including the Queenstown Regional Electrification Development Plan, leadership on distributed energy resources and non-network solutions, and a forward-looking 10-year investment plan that responds to growth, decarbonisation and affordability pressures.

Extension to see through the CPP

Under DCHL's governance policy, directors of council-controlled trading organisations typically serve a maximum of nine years. Recognising the importance of continuity at a critical juncture for Aurora, DCHL sought approval from the Dunedin City Council (DCC) to extend Mr Thompson's tenure beyond that limit so he could see the business through to the conclusion of the CPP regulatory period - a major milestone representing the successful delivery of the largest investment programme in Aurora's history and the foundation for the next regulatory reset.

Mr Loan said the extension reflected the board's confidence in Mr Thompson and the value of leadership stability during the CPP delivery phase.

“Completing the CPP successfully was an outcome of importance for Aurora’s consumers but also of national significance for the EDB sector. Steve's continued chairmanship through that period gave the business the governance continuity it needed, and the results speak for themselves.”

Orderly transition and succession

DCHL is pleased that Mr Thompson has agreed to a long handover and transition period, which will support the incoming Chair, the Aurora board, and the Chief Executive and his team as the business continues the next phase of network investment and positioning the business to support increased electrification and increased solar, battery and Electric Vehicle (EV) connections.

DCHL will now progress the appointment of a replacement Chair through its standard director appointment process. Robust continuity arrangements are in place across the Aurora board and executive to ensure there is no disruption to operations, regulatory engagement, or delivery of Aurora's investment programme during the transition.

An announcement on the new Chair will be made in due course.

From Steve Thompson

Mr Thompson said it had been a privilege to chair Aurora through such a defining period.

“When I joined the board, Aurora faced significant challenges and the road ahead was a hard one. What has been achieved since is a credit to the Aurora team, our contractor partners, successive boards, and the leadership of CEO Richard Fletcher and his executive. Aurora today is a safer, more reliable, and more respected business and one that is well placed to play its part in New Zealand's energy future. After ten years, the time is right for new chairmanship to lead the next chapter, and I am committed to supporting a smooth handover.”

About Aurora Energy

Aurora Energy is the regulated electricity distribution business serving Dunedin, Central Otago, Queenstown-Lakes and the Upper Clutha. It is owned by Dunedin City Holdings Limited on behalf of Dunedin City Council. Aurora delivers power to more than 90,000 connections across one of New Zealand's fastest-growing regions.

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