Trustpower is accusing other electricity retailers of rushing the introduction of "smart meters" to boost profits.
New Zealand companies are updating 70-year-old electricity meters and expect to have installed 1.3 million "smart meters" in homes within four years.
Trustpower spokesperson Graeme Purches, says his company is not installing the electronic meters because they are expensive, unproven and only benefit the retailer.
He says other companies plan to use the meters to lift power charges at specific peak periods and households will be able to do little about their increased bills.
However, Meridian Energy says its customers will benefit immediately from bills based on actual readings, not estimates.
Spokesperson Claire Shaw says the new system has cost millions of dollars to develop and none of the cost has been passed on to the consumer.
On Thursday, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment issued a report criticising the technology planned by electricity companies on the grounds that it mainly benefits the companies themselves.
Commissioner Jan Wright says the meters permit functions such as remote control meter reading and profiling of customer needs for marketing purposes.
Dr Wright says meters could be fitted with microchips allowing them to turn appliances on and off, depending on how expensive the power is, saving customers between $25 million and $123 million a year.
Contact Energy has said its meters could have the microchips added later, when appliances are smart enough to take them.
Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee says it is absurd for power companies to cut corners on the installation of meters which will be used for decades to come. However the Government has no plans to regulate the system at the moment, and will wait until the Electricity Commission reports in December on the rollout of the smart meters.
