New standardised corporate PPA template aims to cut transaction costs and accelerate renewable investment in New Zealand

An energy industry initiative led by BusinessNZ Energy Council, Zeale (formerly EVA Marketplace) and DLA Piper has released New Zealand’s first publicly available, standardised template for corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs), designed to reduce transaction costs and unlock more financing to accelerate renewable energy projects.

Corporate PPAs are increasingly used by large electricity users to secure long-term price certainty while underwriting the development of new renewable generation assets. However, in New Zealand PPAs are relatively new and most transactions have relied on bespoke documentation, adding costs and slowing down PPA negotiations.

The new template provides a balanced, neutral starting point for negotiations between developers and corporate energy users, with the aim of making PPA procurement faster, more consistent and more bankable for project financiers.

The template PPA has been developed over the past year with input from an expert working group of 18 organisations spanning independent generators, all four gen-tailers, large corporate energy users, financiers and public sector participants, alongside a public consultation process.

BusinessNZ Energy Council policy advisor Ben Young said standardisation removes a practical barrier to investment.

“Reducing legal friction and negotiation time gives both buyers and project developers greater confidence to commit capital. That helps bring forward new renewable generation.”

The legal drafting was led by DLA Piper’s energy team based in New Zealand, drawing on experience from established PPA markets in the UK, Europe and Australia and adapting those precedents for local regulatory and wholesale market settings.

DLA Piper partner Rob Macredie said the focus was on risk allocation and repeatability.

“A well-structured template means parties do not need to rebuild contracts from first principles and can leverage experience from earlier contracts, as well as key learnings from other markets where PPAs are more prevalent. That shortens deal timelines, improves bankability and makes transactions easier to finance.”

The initiative was established by Zeale and founder Paul Coster said improving accessibility was critical for smaller electricity buyers.

“New Zealand has a relatively small pool of large buyers. Making PPAs simpler to understand and execute allows more businesses to participate in the clean energy transition.”

The working group has also identified firming and sleeving arrangements as a remaining constraint and is considering a second phase to support more standardised approaches.

The initiative is further distinguished by the firm’s global leadership in PPAs. Inspiratia has ranked DLA Piper as Legal Adviser of the Year – Renewables for four consecutive years at the Europe Energy Transition Awards (2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025). In addition, DLA Piper is ranked as the #1 Legal Advisor for Energy Transition Deals, globally (by deal count) throughout 2021-25, and the #1 corporate PPA legal adviser in Europe by deal volume (2021-23). In 2024, DLA Piper became the first law firm globally to act as a corporate PPA offtaker.

The template and accompanying guide are now available free of charge on Zeale’s website.