The legislative framework that regulates electricity retail licencing and exemption activities under the Electricity Industry Act 2004 (the Act) has not kept pace with the rapid growth of alternative electricity supply arrangements and business models. Consequently, the regulatory regime is not well equipped to ensure the adequacy of customer protections that electricity consumers have enjoyed under the more traditional supply arrangements.
In this context, the Minister for Energy asked Energy Policy WA to review the regulatory framework for electricity retail licensing and exemptions and identify a preferred regulatory framework that facilitates businesses providing behind‑the-meter electricity services, including generation and storage, while ensuring consumers of those services have adequate consumer protections.
Directions Report
On 17 January 2020, Energy Policy WA released the Directions Report, Creating a dynamic customer protection framework for behind-the-meter electricity services, outlining a proposed regulatory framework involving the development of customised codes of practice for categories of ‘alternative electricity service’, with a focus on ensuring adequate consumer protections for service recipients or prospective recipients. Each code of practice will be developed in consultation with industry stakeholders and consumer representatives. To enable these codes of practice, a new head of power is proposed to be inserted in the Act to allow an alternative regime to the existing electricity licensing and exemption arrangements. This approach will allow the framework to respond to new and emerging electricity service business models as needed.
In the first instance, it is proposed that behind-the-meter generation and storage services will be prescribed as an alternative electricity service. Future services that could be prescribed include electric vehicle charging stations, community energy projects and peer-to-peer energy trading.
Next Steps
Energy Policy WA is scheduled to provide the Minister for Energy with a recommendations report outlining the detailed arrangements and implementation requirements for the alternative regulatory framework in April 2020. This report will be accompanied by a draft Code of Practice for behind-the-meter generation and storage services.
Further detailed stakeholder consultation on the draft BTM Code will occur at a later stage of the process as part of the development of the alternative regulatory framework.
- Additional information is available on the Draft Code of Practice for Behind-the-meter generation and storage services webpage.
Energy Policy WA is also available to meet with stakeholder representatives throughout this review process. Stakeholders can register interest in receiving further information and updates by email to info@energy.wa.gov.au
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