The Australian Energy Market Commission today started consulting on a proposal aimed at streamlining the coordination for necessary infrastructure maintenance in Victoria’s wholesale gas market, proposed by the Australian Energy Market Operator.
The rule change, if made, would clarify AEMO’s existing maintenance coordination function and eliminate inconsistencies between the National Gas Law (NGL) and Part 19 of the National Gas Rules (NGR). Part 19 applies exclusively to the Victorian Declared Wholesale Gas Market (DWGM).
The proposed rule seeks to address a trifecta of maintenance planning issues by:
- Introducing a consistent standard for system security in the NGR where different sections of the rules currently hold contradictory requirements.
- Removing the need for extra maintenance directions through the introduction of a new definition: ‘DWGM facility operators’, which would incorporate all system participants into a common procedure for maintenance planning.
- Removing references to ‘Producer’ and ‘Storage Provider’ from the NGR to ensure that only NGL definitions apply to Part 19 of the NGR.
In essence, the rule change request seeks to ease the administrative requirements on AEMO to responsibly coordinate maintenance of the Victorian gas market, and therefore more successfully deliver a smooth-running DWGM with clarity of roles and standards.
The AEMC proposes to expedite this rule change on the basis that the rule is non-controversial.
The AEMC invites stakeholders to make a submission on the proposed changes, and this expedited rule change process, with submissions closing 19 November 2020. Written requests objecting to use the expedited process need to be received by 5 November 2020.
Media: Kellie Bisset, Media and Content Manager, 0438 490 041