Notification of removal of previous SA government derogation on price reporting from the Gas Pipeline Regulation National Package

On 8 June 2022, Energy Ministers acknowledged the current challenges facing the east-coast energy market are significant. They provide however, an opportunity for the Commonwealth, states and territories to work collaboratively, with the support of the market operator and regulator, ensuring Australians continue to have access to reliable and affordable energy.

Energy Ministers agreed on a number of actions that can be progressed immediately, to help settle and restore confidence in the market both in the short and medium term.

Energy Ministers noted the existing gas transparency reform package had been recently introduced into the South Australian Parliament. The gas transparency package has now passed the South Australian Parliament and commenced on Thursday 23 June 2022. Energy Ministers also agreed to consider additional legislative reform options in July to enable new gas and electricity contract market monitoring powers as an immediate priority.

The package of transparency reforms to complement the above initiative includes the National Energy Laws Amendment (Gas Pipelines) Bill 2021. Energy Ministers have released an information paper to provide a high-level overview of the package.

The previous South Australian Government proposed a derogation from service providers being required to publish information on the individual prices paid by shippers (including key terms and conditions). Stakeholder consultation was undertaken on this derogation.

The impact of the proposed derogation, identified by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, would limit the transparency of pricing on gas pipelines in South Australia. This may make it more difficult for gas suppliers or South Australian shippers to negotiate and agree gas transportation prices to ensure gas is supplied to southern states when needed.

The current South Australian government never supported a derogation and will therefore remove all elements of the derogation and implement the gas pipeline package as originally intended.

The three packages of gas transparency reforms are:

• Gast Market Transparency
• Gas Pipeline Regulation
• Market monitoring

The above packages will help position the energy sector to be more resilient and able to navigate future global or domestic challenges, ensuring a secure sector that will underpin a modern and low carbon economy.

You can find out more about the outcome of this consultation on the Department of Energy and Mining website.