What is research@AEMC?

With the rapid pace and scale of the energy transition, connecting with researchers is vital to cultivating a broad and rigorous vision of potential futures that inform a robust policy design.

research@AEMC seeks to support forward-thinking, evidence-based policy development for Australia’s energy markets by forging meaningful connections between the AEMC and academics engaged in topics critical to our work. This collaborative approach not only keeps us informed of cutting-edge research and innovative ideas, but also enables us to shape the research agenda by sharing practical, real-world problems with the academic community. 

Our Workstreams

To facilitate this vital exchange of knowledge and ideas, our program is structured around five workstreams:

Research Partner Program

We actively engage with academic and research institutions to explore opportunities for collaborative research, knowledge sharing or those enlightening ‘aha’ moments that introduce fresh perspectives. Understanding what different researchers are working on allows us to connect our policy teams with the right experts when needed.

For example, we recently established a memorandum of understanding with Monash University to help us understand our common research interests and ways of working together.  The MOU is intended to act as a prototype to guide further collaborations with other research institutions.

We welcome researchers interested in the energy space to share their work with us and explore research projects aligned with our research priorities (see below). We are open to supporting these projects with in-kind contributions and letters of support. If you would like to connect, please email us at research@aemc.gov.au

Breakfast of champions seminars

We encourage academics to join us to talk about their early-stage projects in collegial ‘breakfast seminars’, where we learn about cutting edge research from Australian and international academics. Our breakfast of champions seminars facilitate an informal knowledge exchange between the AEMC and the academic community. These sessions provide academics with hands-on advice on how energy markets operate, while offering academics a platform to showcase their innovative research. These seminars have become a highly anticipated opportunity for our staff to learn and grow, creating widespread connections with the research community. 

Connecting policy and research forums

Since 2023, we have hosted annual, invite-only forums that bring together researchers and policymakers in open dialogue. These half-day sessions focus tightly on one theme and support our work program by equipping our policy teams with the latest evidence and insights through free-flowing and fearless debate. 

Here is a list of our forums to date:

1. ‘Imagination’ in July 2023
2. Distribution Evolution - tariffs, services and regulations for a consumer-driven future in April 2024
3. Beyond the transition - Exploring the future of wholesale electricity market design in a high VRE world.

Speaking engagement at conferences

We  encourage our staff to participate as speakers at academic conferences, where we not only share our work but also learn from the broader research community. Our staff has presented at conferences such as the State of Energy Research Conference (SoERC), the International Council on Large Electric Systems (CIGRE) conference and the Australian Conference of Economists.

Postgrad program 

In partnership with the Rozetta Institute, we offer opportunities for postgraduate students to engage with our work, providing a platform for emerging talents to contribute to research that shapes our policy work. 

Our research priorities

If any of these workstreams sound interesting to you, we invite you to engage with us around our six research priorities, which are the cornerstones of our forward-thinking projects.

1. Future of wholesale electricity markets  
   • Bidding behaviours of fuel-constrained, zero marginal cost resources (such as batteries) and impacts on price formation
   • Integrating new and missing markets 
2. Climate change adaptation, valuing resilience and planning under uncertainty
3. The future role of networks in a high CER world
4. Future supply and demand for security services in a transitioning grid and the role of grid-forming inverters
5. The future of gas  
   • Regulatory principles for retiring assets 
   • Gas-electricity trade-offs from electrification and the future role of gas-powered generation
   • Low carbon gas alternatives and Australia’s green industrial future
6. CER adoption and integration  
   • When and where will EVs be charged? Is EV charging a public or private good?
   • How price elastic is the operation of various CER devices, and what factors influence consumer price elasticity?
   • Understanding customer preferences for CER and what drives investment and operating decisions  
7. Behavioural insights and nudges
   • Are there decision-making biases among consumers, market participants and investors that we need to account for in policy design? 
   • Can we better harness the power of nudges to effectively implement consumer-focused policies, for example to better integrate CER. 

Get involved

At AEMC, we are committed to listening, learning, and collaborating with our research community. We invite you to explore our research@AEMC program further by contacting us at research@AEMC.gov.au.

 Your contributions are key to ensuring that our policy thinking reflects the best available research and responds effectively to the challenges and opportunities of the energy transition.