Our people
Designing and operating New Zealand’s electricity system takes great people. Our team is made up of around 120 staff who are led by our Board, Chief Executive and senior leadership team.
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Our governance and management
The Electricity Authority is governed by a Board who are appointed by the Governor-General on the recommendations of the Minister for Energy, following a public call for nominations.
Our Chief Executive and senior leadership team lead a team of 120 – and we're growing. Each staff member plays a vital role in championing our values, vision and success.
Our Board
Our Board members bring a wealth of governance and business development expertise, as well as extensive experience in energy, utilities, infrastructure, environment, engineering, law and finance.
Anna Kominik
Chair
Anna Kominik
Chair
Anna was appointed Chair of the Authority in July 2023, bringing expertise in energy, innovation, governance, and business leadership. She has worked across public and private sectors in New Zealand and internationally, introducing new technologies and navigating highly regulated environments.
Her governance experience includes chairing the Edmund Hillary Fellowship, the Hillary Institute for Global Leadership, the NZ-US Business Council, and the Vertical Flight Society (Asia-Australia), as well as serving as the Independent Chair of the Electricity Retailers Association.
Anna is current director of Dawn Aerospace and advises aviation and aerospace companies globally. She previously led Asia-Pacific operations for a US company developing an all-electric, self-flying (AI) air taxi and has supported startups and scaleups for over a decade.
She holds a master’s degree from Northwestern University as a Rotary International Scholar and a Certificate in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from Stanford University. She has worked for two New Zealand Prime Ministers and the Commonwealth Secretary General; has been internationally recognised for her work in advanced aviation, and was a Commonwealth Foundation Emerging Pacific Leader.
Dr Cristiano Marantes
Dr Cristiano Marantes
Cristiano has a comprehensive background in the international energy sector. He has extensive experience in energy innovation and the adoption of new low-emissions energy solutions.
He is Chief Executive of Ara Ake, New Zealand’s Future Energy Centre, which he has led since August 2020. Prior to that he held senior roles at Vector Limited and UK Power Networks. He holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering from the University of Manchester.
Cristiano was appointed to our Board for a five-year term from 1 July 2023.
Paula Rose QSO
Paula Rose QSO
Paula is a Canterbury based director with a background in regulatory organisations in governance, management, policy and practitioner roles. She has over a decade of governance experience in Crown and non-profit organisations.
Paula’s current roles include Deputy Chief Commissioner Te Kāhui Tātari Ture Criminal Cases Review Commission and Commissioner with the Transport Accident Investigation Commission. She is a long-term volunteer with Hato Hone St John, is a Board Member on their Priory Board, and was made a Commander of the Order of St John in 2025. She holds a Queen's Service Order (QSO).
Paula was appointed to our Board on 16 January 2023 for a five year term.
Lana Stockman
Lana Stockman
Lana Stockman is a seasoned leader with over 25 years of experience in the energy and infrastructure sectors, including seven years on our Board. She also serves as a Commissioner at the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC), where she plays a pivotal role in shaping energy policy, overseeing strategic initiatives, and driving market development and reform.
Lana’s career spans a diverse range of governance and regulatory roles across the energy, health, financial services and education sectors. Her expertise lies in wholesale market design, transmission and distribution reform, and delivering better outcomes for consumers. She has successfully navigated complex challenges, particularly during times of industry transformation and disruption.
Before her appointment to the AEMC, Lana was Vice President of Regulation at Aurizon Network, an ASX-listed company delivering freight and infrastructure solutions. She also held senior roles at EnergyAustralia, where she led regulatory compliance and competition policy initiatives, and served as a Board Member of the Electricity Retailers Association of Australia.
Lana holds degrees in engineering and finance, equipping her with a unique blend of technical expertise and commercial acumen. She is recognised for her innovative thinking, strategic leadership, and ability to foster strong relationships across diverse stakeholder groups.
Erik Westergaard
Erik Westergaard
Erik is an electricity market and energy sector regulatory specialist who has been closely involved in the establishment and ongoing development of electricity market arrangements in several countries. His work has included reviewing market arrangements to ensure that the electricity market delivered the expected benefits to consumers.
Erik was appointed by the Minister of Energy and Resources to act as Specialist Technical Advisor on the investigation into the 9 August 2021 power outages and was a member of the Security and Reliability Council for six years.
Erik has held a number of senior positions within industry participants and large international consulting firms. He is currently an independent consultant.
Erik was appointed to our Board on 16 January 2023 for a five-year term.
Our Board has established an Audit and Finance Committee, Compliance Committee, Market Operations Committee, and TPM Committee.
We have two main advisory and technical groups who provide specialist independent advice and recommendations on the electricity industry to our Board.
Our senior leadership team
Members of our senior leadership team are experts in policy, economics, law, strategy, finance and communications.
Sarah Gillies
Chief Executive
Sarah Gillies
Chief Executive
Sarah Gillies is the Chief Executive of the Electricity Authority.
She was appointed to the role in December 2022 and was previously the Authority’s General Manager Legal, Monitoring and Compliance. Sarah is a lawyer by background. She has spent most of her career in-house in corporates in both legal and non-legal roles and has also worked in large law firms.
She has an interest in technology businesses and has held governance roles, including on the board of a technology start up.
Mark Herring
General Manager, Corporate and Market Services
Mark Herring
General Manager, Corporate and Market Services
Mark leads our Corporate and Market Services. This team is responsible for our service providers who operate the electricity market efficiently and facilitate market development, and for internal functions including procurement, planning and reporting, finance, IT, risk and assurance.
Prior to joining the Electricity Authority, Mark was Group Manager for Markets and Business at Transpower New Zealand, where he led market policy, security of supply, regulation, reporting and change delivery.
Mark has also worked in a variety of leadership roles for the UK’s National Grid across functions including strategy, innovation, and code change. He brings strategic experience, stakeholder management skills and an extensive industry background to the role.
Airihi Mahuika
General Manager, Legal, Monitoring and Compliance
Airihi Mahuika
General Manager, Legal, Monitoring and Compliance
Airihi leads our Legal, Monitoring and Compliance teams.
Alongside other diverse legal roles, Airihi has extensive experience in infrastructure and economic regulation, having worked for both regulators and regulated companies across the electricity, transport and telecommunications sectors. She has previously held senior leadership roles in both the public service and commercial organisations.
Born in Tairāwhiti, Airihi is from Ngāti Porou.
Andrew Millar
General Manager, Retail & Consumer
Andrew Millar
General Manager, Retail & Consumer
Andrew leads our Retail and Consumer group, which is responsible for empowering and protecting consumers so that they can benefit for a secure, competitive, and affordability electricity market.
Andrew has extensive experience in public policy with a particular interest in using new and innovative models of policy development to help resolve difficult policy problems.
Prior to joining the Electricity Authority, Andrew was a Managing Principal at MartinJenkins. He has also worked for over 10 years in a number of government agencies as both a policy adviser and a policy manager. This included roles with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Ministry for the Environment, and the former Department of Building and Housing.
Andrew has specialised skills in climate, energy and natural resources policy. He has worked on domestic and international climate change issues, on upstream and downstream energy policy development, and on marine policy.
Tim Sparks
General Manager, Networks & System Change
Tim Sparks
General Manager, Networks & System Change
Tim leads our Networks & System Change group. The three policy teams in this group make sure the rules are fit for purpose when it comes to:
- connecting to networks and use of network data
- maintaining the security and resilience of the system through the transition with increasing amounts of distributed resources and intermittent generation
- improving price signals for the distribution and transmission segments of the electricity supply chain.
This work aims to reduce the costs of the system over the long term for consumers, including through promoting efficient investment in and operation of energy technology and demand-side flexibility.
Previously, Tim worked in telecommunications, at Chorus and Optus, in roles with a focus on economic regulation.
Hayden Glass
General Manager, Wholesale and Supply
Hayden Glass
General Manager, Wholesale and Supply
Hayden leads our Wholesale and Supply team. He is an experienced leader and strategic advisor with a background in policy, regulation and technology in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Hayden is skilled in problem analysis, policy design, network economics and stakeholder engagement.
He has held senior roles at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Sapere Research Group, Figure.NZ and Vodafone New Zealand.
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