The Case for National Electricity Reform

| February 17, 2017
The case for National Electricity Reform

The latest report by the National Standing Committee on Energy and the Environment calls for a redesign of the National Electricity Market (NEM) to align with Australia’s fast-changing demand profiles and more diverse grid technology.

The document’s development was guided by the deliberations of the National Standing Committee on Energy and the Environment (NSCEE) – a crossjurisdictional, multidisciplinary group of stakeholders organised by the institute for active policy Global Access Partners (GAP) in 2016.

The report makes a number of recommendations for reform:

  1. Australian Federal and State Governments should accept the need for NEM reform and produce a blueprint for its transformation.
  2. Governments should broaden the current NEO to reflect emerging economic, social and environmental issues.
  3. Stakeholders should adopt governance and management structures which address the system as a whole.
  4. The critical importance of system design and planning to the NEM needs to be recognised.
  5. System design and planning should be undertaken by a dedicated and singleminded organisation. The report recommends the establishment of a NEM Planning and Design Authority (NEMPDA).
  6. Government should establish structures that promote industry interaction and participation across the NEM and enhance the understanding and adoption of best-practice technical and operational measures.
  7. Government should use existing suites of programmes and grant schemes to encourage appropriate market responses by industry and consumers to meet new NEM priorities.
  8. Government should accept the obvious link between energy policy and climate policy to ensure each proceeds in a coordinated and positive direction.
  9. Government and other stakeholders must recognise the consumer-centric nature of a modernised NEM.
  10. Stakeholders must acknowledge and address key information and data gaps in the network.

To read the full discussion paper, please follow this link.

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One Comment

  1. Alan Stevenson

    Alan Stevenson

    March 5, 2017 at 4:29 am

    National electricity reform

    It has become obvious that we need a single, national entity to properly manage our power requirements. I believe that the overall governance should be in the hands of the government with private enterprise in the actual production. All available options – nuclear, oil, gas and coal as well as renewables should be looked at and a clear determination by government as to the possible life expectancy of each source determined. This will enable private enterprise to plan ahead adequately the building and life expectancy of each source in order to determine cost effectiveness.