Congratulations to Hugh Thomson, trainee line mechanic with Counties Energy, who has been named this year’s Overall Trainee of the Year at the Connexis Excellence Awards. Hugh, who has been at Counties Energy since 2022 was also named winner of the Distribution Trainee of the Year. In nominating Hugh for the award Counties Energy described Hugh as going the extra …
News
Congratulations to our Annual Connection winners
Congratulations to Northland’s Top Energy who have won the Annual Connection line mechanic competition two years in a row! The same team that won in Te Awamutu in 2024 returned to Annual Connection 2025 in Christchurch to triumph again. Congratulations to: Team foreman Simon Bayliss, Michael Kava, Lance Kahotea, trainee Michael Mitchell and team manager Karl Wilson. On their path …
Meet Canterbury Westland’s top excavator operator
Timaru local Sam Burleigh has been named Canterbury Westland’s top excavator operator, taking out first place at the Civil Contractors New Zealand CablePrice Excavator Competition held at Road Metals Quarry in Rolleston on 4 October. The Thompson Engineering 2002 foreman conquered a series of gruelling challenges designed to test precision, skill, and technical know-how – from truck loading to the …
Bringing the energy to win
Northland’s Top Energy are bringing the same line mechanic crew to Annual Connection 2025, which won the competition last year. What do you think the secret was to your success last year?Simon Bayliss (team foreman): “I don’t think there is a secret, but I think for us it was the ability to adapt under pressure. It was not all smooth …
Young Ashburton women cable jointers taking on the best in NZ
As the country’s top energy sector workers show off their world-class skills at a national competition event in Christchurch next month, two young local women are making their mark. More female competitors are making their presence felt at Annual Connection each year, and this year is no exception with a record number of women registered to take on the challenges …
PRESS RELEASE: New Zealand’s outstanding electricity supply skills to light up Christchurch
8 October 2025 They keep the lights on and the jug boiling – now they’re stepping into the spotlight. More than 100 of New Zealand’s best line mechanics and cable jointers are set to show off their world class skills and knowledge as they compete in Annual Connection 2025. Annual Connection, organised annually by Connexis, the national training provider to …
Education through Connexis helps rebuild lives in Whanganui
For those returning to the community after serving a custodial sentence, finding employment is important to staying on track. For those with a criminal record, a job can be hard to come by. A new initiative at Whanganui Prison hopes to help change that and make it easier for some prisoners to navigate the change to life on the outside …
Back to win
2024 winning cable jointer Taylor Simmonds is looking to repeat his success at Annual Connection. Annual Connection 2024 winning cable jointer, Taylor Simmonds from Omexom in Auckland is gearing up to defend his title at the 2025 event at Christchurch’s Canterbury Agricultural Park, 21-23 October. “I’ve prepared differently this year. Last year I didn’t know what to expect but this …
Top apprentice has his eyes on the future
“The thing that keeps me motivated is having a plan for the future in my mind. That helps me push through and complete the training that will allow me to develop and try to achieve those long-term goals.” That approach to apprenticeship training is paying off so far for Ethan Morris, who was recently named Apprentice of the Year at the …
Annual Connection: a judge’s view
If there’s anybody that knows what it takes to take on the responsibility of judging the skills of line mechanic crews at Annual Connection, it’s Phil Johnson from PowerNet in Invercargill. Phil has been a judge in almost every Annual Connection line mechanic competition since it was resurrected at the Hamilton event in 2002, stepping aside only once in 2003 …