Electricity experts are worried rules preventing profiteering could discourage lines companies from properly preparing for another emergency.
They say the Commerce Commission should reconsider its restrictions on the number of lines a company can provide to back up supply during a disaster.
Lines company, Orion, was restoring power to Christchurch witht the use of an extensive network of back-up power lines.
But critics, including Alan Jenkins of the Electricity Networks Association, say similar systems are hard to achieve because of Commerce Commission rules.
They say those rules deter spare capacity being prepared for a crisis, and should be reviewed.
