Electricity Supply Industry (Price Control) Amendment Regulations 2002

Electricity Supply Industry (Price Control) Amendment Regulations 2002

I, the Governor in and over the State of Tasmania and its Dependencies in the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Executive Council, make the following regulations under the Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995 .

7 October 2002

G. S. M. GREEN

Governor

By His Excellency's Command,

DAVID CREAN

Treasurer

1.   Short title

These regulations may be cited as the Electricity Supply Industry (Price Control) Amendment Regulations 2002 .

2.   Commencement

These regulations take effect on the day on which their making is notified in the Gazette.

3.   Principal Regulations

In these regulations, the Electricity Supply Industry (Price Control) Regulations 1998 are referred to as the Principal Regulations.

4.    Part 3A inserted

After regulation 21 of the Principal Regulations , the following Part is inserted:

PART 3A - Electricity pricing order for 2003

21A.   Interpretation

In this Part –

Aggregate Annual Revenue Requirement means the maximum revenue for distribution services or transmission services provided for and calculated in accordance with the electricity price determination for the year ending on 31 December 2002;

declared ancillary services means those services defined as ancillary services in the Code and which have been declared to be electrical services under regulation 5 ;

electricity price determination means the pricing determination in respect of the supply of electrical services issued by the Regulator on 17 December 1999 and reissued as amended on 21 December 2000;

electricity pricing order means an order made under regulation 21B(1) ;

maintained in real terms, in relation to an amount, means adjusting the amount to take account of inflation;

over or under-recoveries means the amount of over-recovery or under-recovery of an Aggregate Annual Revenue Requirement calculated in accordance with the electricity price determination and attributable to the difference between the actual energy and demand quantities metered in the year ending on 31 December 2002 and the forecast energy and demand quantities from which the transmission or distribution prices for that year were calculated;

renewable energy certificate means a certificate within the meaning of the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Act 2000 of the Commonwealth;

tariff customer means a customer who is supplied with electricity on conditions fixed by a tariff.

21B.   Power to make electricity pricing order

(1)  On the request of the Minister, the Regulator may make an order setting the maximum prices that may be charged by electricity entities for the supply of electrical services in respect of the year commencing on 1 January 2003.

(2)  On receipt of the request of the Minister and before making an order under subregulation (1) , the Regulator must –

(a) give written notice of the request to any electricity entity likely to be affected by the order; and

(b) publish notice of the request in 3 daily newspapers published and circulating in Tasmania.

(3)  Before making an order under subregulation (1) , the Regulator must –

(a) consult with the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the order; and

(b) provide a draft copy of the order to the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the order; and

(c) allow the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the order to make submissions to him or her in respect of the order; and

(d) consider any submissions made under paragraph (c) .

21C.   Terms of electricity pricing order

(1)  The electricity pricing order is to have substantially the same effect as the electricity price determination.

(2)  Despite subregulation (1) , the electricity pricing order may vary in effect to the electricity price determination to allow the Regulator to have regard to the following general principles in making the order:

(a) the maximum price payable on 31 December 2002 for energy generated by the Hydro-Electric Corporation and sold to Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. for the purposes of supply to tariff customers should be adjusted so that it is maintained in real terms during the year ending on 31 December 2003;

(b) the maximum annual charges payable for the year ending on 31 December 2002 for declared ancillary services provided by the Hydro-Electric Corporation should be adjusted so that they are maintained in real terms during the year ending on 31 December 2003;

(c) during the year ending on 31 December 2003, the Aggregate Annual Revenue Requirement for transmission services and for distribution services for the year ending on 31 December 2002 should be adjusted so that they are maintained in real terms, taking into account any over or under-recoveries, and the effect of any differences between the actual capital expenditure approved by the Regulator and the relevant Capital Expenditure Budget referred to in Schedule 2 or Schedule 3 to the electricity price determination;

(d) during the year ending on 31 December 2003, the maximum prices for the provision of electricity to tariff customers for the year ending on 31 December 2002 should be adjusted so that they are maintained in real terms, having regard to customer classes and the following adjustments:

(i) to pass-through to customers the impact on Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. of paragraph (a) and an appropriate share of the impact on Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. of paragraphs (b) and (c) ;

(ii) to pass-through to customers an appropriate share of the budgeted costs for electrical safety services for the year ending on 31 December 2003 approved by the Regulator;

(iii) to pass-through to customers an appropriate share of the budgeted costs of the system controller approved by the Regulator in accordance with the Code for the year ending on 31 December 2003;

(iv) to pass-through a portion of the costs that Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. has incurred or will incur in establishing the systems it uses for purchasing renewable energy certificates;

(v) to pass-through a portion of the costs that Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. has incurred or will incur in purchasing renewable energy certificates in respect of the period commencing on 1 January 2002 and ending on 31 December 2003;

(e) the maximum prices payable on 31 December 2002 for the provision of other electrical services should be adjusted so that they are maintained in real terms during the year ending on 31 December 2003.

(3)  The portion of the costs to be passed-through under subregulation (2)(d)(iv) and (v) should bear the same proportion, as nearly as possible, as the amount of electricity forecast to be sold to tariff customers by Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. during the year ending on 31 December 2003 bears to all electricity forecast to be sold by Aurora Energy Pty. Ltd. during that year.

(4)  Despite subregulation (1) , in relation to King Island and Flinders Island the electricity pricing order may vary in effect to the electricity price determination to allow the Regulator to have regard to the following general principles in making the order:

(a) during the year ending on 31 December 2003, the maximum prices payable on 31 December 2002 for electrical services should be adjusted so that they are maintained in real terms;

(b) during the year ending on 31 December 2003, the maximum prices payable for electrical services should be further adjusted having regard to the likely changes in the cost of diesel fuel used by the Hydro-Electric Corporation for the generation of electricity on King Island and Flinders Island during that year.

21D.   Amendment of electricity pricing order

The Regulator may amend the electricity pricing order if –

(a) he or she has first consulted in respect of the proposed amendment with the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the proposed amendment; and

(b) he or she has provided a draft copy of the amendment to the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the amendment; and

(c) he or she has allowed the Minister and any electricity entity likely to be affected by the amendment to make submissions to him or her in respect of the amendment; and

(d) he or she has considered any submissions made under paragraph (c) ; and

(e) the amendment has substantially the same effect as the electricity price determination except as otherwise permitted by regulation 21C .

Displayed and numbered in accordance with the Rules Publication Act 1953.

Notified in the Gazette on 16 October 2002

These regulations are administered in the Department of Treasury and Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the regulation)

These regulations allow for the extension of the existing price determination.