On 20 February 2018 the AEMC made a rule that provides the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) with greater regulatory certainty in disclosing the system restart plan to certain parties for the purposes of preparing for, and participating in, system restoration during a major supply disruption. 

The final rule amends the National Electricity Rules (NER) to:

• include explicit provisions for AEMO to disclose the system restart plan to:
  • jurisdictional system security coordinators
  • network service providers
  • generators contracted to provide system restart ancillary services
  • any other registered participant whose assistance AEMO considers necessary for the implementation of the system restart plan
• clarify the confidentiality obligations of jurisdictional system security coordinators who receive the system restart plan
• clarify that the system restart plan can comprise one or more separable components, and that AEMO may disclose the whole or any component of the system restart plan to the parties specified above.

The final rule starts on 27 February 2018.

Background

17 October 2017 the AEMC received a rule change request from AEMO that sought to amend the NER to allow AEMO to disclose the whole or any part of a system restart plan to certain parties for the purposes of preparing for, and participating in, system restoration activities during a major supply disruption.  AEMO also proposed amendments to the NER to specify that AEMO may develop multiple system restart plans covering one or more regions of the entire national grid, as opposed to just one grid-wide plan.

A key driver for the rule change request was a lack of regulatory certainty perceived by AEMO in how it discloses the system restart plan.

Consultation

A consultation paper was published on 9 January 2018 to facilitate discussion on the rule change request. Submissions closed on 6 February 2018. Seven submissions to the consultation paper were received and are available below.

The AEMC considered that the rule change request should be subject to the expedited rule making process. Written objections to the expedited process closed on 23 January 2018. No objections were received.