Renewable electricity continues to increase in New Zealand.

At 80.7 per cent it is currently the highest it has been since 1995, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment's (MBIE) latest Energy Quarterly shows.

MBIE data for the December quarter 2015 also shows a 2.1 per cent fall in the average residential cost per unit since the previous December quarter due to lower household expenditure on electricity, while demand was 1.2 per cent higher than the year before.

The largest increase was in the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector, up 9 per cent, while residential demand was up .5 per cent.

'This is in contrast to the falling trend observed in recent years,” says James Hogan, MBIE's manager of energy and building trend.

Demand for diesel reached a record high as it rose by 3.3 per cent. Petrol demand increased 2.8 per cent. Prices for these fuels decreased as crude prices fell to their lowest levels in 11 years.

'Demand for diesel is considered to be a lead indicator of economic performance by market commentators because of its use as a primary fuel for commercial land transport.”