They were broken alright.
Following is an excerpt from a paper from the New Zealand Institute for the Study of Competition and Regulation (ISCR)
http://www.iscr.org.nz/f310,14092/Ch...rm_History.pdf
In 1985 it was apparent that in terms of generation, at least, the electricity industry was not performing well. As noted in the Ministry of Energy's review in 1984, the Electricity Division's performance measurement was complicated by electricity pricing being set externally, it paid no tax, it required considerable capital, and its "essential nature" and "monopoly role" made it a target for industrial action. .