An Invercargill woman who went from school to a PowerNet job in 2016 has been named New Zealand's advanced energy trainee of the year.

Jessie King, now a power technician with Omexom, collected the award when the Connexis Energy Trainee Awards for 2026 were presented, the Otago Daily Times reported on 29 October. The awards were presented in late October.

King was certified in March this year, having finished the power technician strand of the New Zealand Certificate in Electricity Supply. Her work covers every aspect of transmitting high-voltage electricity, the ODT said.

She told the paper the job always threw up a fresh project, a challenge or a problem to solve, so she was constantly learning, and she enjoyed the travel the job brought with it. "I'm always learning something new," she said.

The award was presented by PowerNet chief executive Paul Blue, a nod to the Invercargill lines company where King began her career after leaving school in 2016. She has since moved to Omexom, the contracting firm that works on transmission and distribution networks across the lower South Island.

Connexis is a national training provider for the electricity supply industry and other infrastructure trades, including civil construction, telecommunications and water. It set up the trainee awards to put young infrastructure workers in the spotlight.

The awards are the finale of Annual Connection, a competition held over three days that shows off the skills of New Zealand's electricity supply workforce. About 80 students from eight schools were brought along to this year's event to see the industry at work.

Connexis executive director Kaarin Gaukrodger said much of the day-to-day work done by skilled line crews happened out of public view, which made the event an important chance to recognise their skill and commitment.

Counties Energy chief executive Judy Nicholl described Annual Connection as the sector in action, and said the skill, teamwork and professionalism on show reflected what made the industry special.

Connexis says the awards exist to showcase young talent coming through infrastructure trades, and the trainee of the year titles are judged across entrants from throughout the country.

King's path, from a school leaver on the PowerNet payroll to a certified power technician recognised nationally within a decade, is the kind of pipeline the industry says it needs more of.