The AER Board

Clare Savage was appointed Chair of the Australian Energy Regulator in October 2019 and is Chair of the Energy Advisory Panel (formerly the Energy Security Board). In September 2024 Clare was also appointed as Chair of the Regulator Leadership Cohort.

Over more than 21 years, Clare has acquired significant leadership experience in the Australian energy industry. She has a passion for the energy sector and a commitment to its development, particularly through this current transition.

Prior to joining the AER, Clare was Deputy Chair of the Energy Security Board. Prior to joining the ESB, Clare held a variety of roles including senior executive positions within EnergyAustralia spanning corporate strategy; business development; policy & government affairs; and public affairs. 

Prior to this Clare held a range of positions at the Energy Supply Association of Australia including Chief Executive Officer. Clare commenced her career in the public service – initially in the UK and then at the Federal Department of the Treasury.

Clare has a Bachelor of Commerce (Economics) and a Bachelor of Arts (Politics and History) from The University of Melbourne and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Justin Oliver has been involved with the AER since February 2020 and was appointed Deputy Chair in June 2024.

Justin was formerly a partner of MinterEllison, specialising in competition law and energy regulation.  

Prior to joining MinterEllison, Justin was the head of the ACCC’s regulatory law practice, advising on all aspects of energy, communications and transport regulation, and became the head of legal for the Australian Energy Regulator upon its creation in 2005.  

Justin has also worked as a senior lawyer in the Victorian Premier’s Department. 

For two decades, Justin has acted for governments, regulators and industry participants involved in all parts of Australia’s energy sector.   

Justin holds a Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from Monash University. 

Jarrod Ball was appointed to the Board in May 2023. 

Prior to this, Jarrod was Chief Economist at the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) leading their economic research and advocacy.  

He has more than 21 years of experience in public policy, government relations and economics, working across state and federal governments and major Australian companies such as EY and BHP.  

Jarrod has provided economic and policy advice to governments across the energy, transport and telecommunications sectors, including as a lead adviser on microeconomic reform in the Victorian Government. 

Jarrod has also held several board and committee positions across government and business and until recently was an Adjunct Associate Professor at Deakin Business School. 

Jarrod holds a Masters in Economics from Monash University, and a Bachelor of Business and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Southern Queensland. 

Lynne Gallagher was appointed to the Board in June 2023.  

For more than 16 years, Lynne has championed major reforms and systems design change in Australia’s energy sector, to achieve better outcomes for people and communities.  

Prior to joining the AER, Lynne was the Chief Executive Officer of Energy Consumers Australia, the national voice for households and small businesses.  

During this time, she led the development of the most extensive set of ongoing energy consumer research in Australia and was a leading contributor to the internationally path-breaking Digital Energy Futures research program. 

Before working in the energy sector, Lynne held senior executive leadership roles in business, including in the finance, infrastructure and superannuation sectors, and in the public sector, including Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Treasury. 

Lynne holds a Bachelor of Economics from the Australian National University and has completed Harvard University’s Applied Behavioural Insights for Public Policy program and the Executive Leadership Program at Mt Eliza Business School. 

Kate Symons was appointed to the Board in September 2024. 

She is a lawyer with qualifications in public administration and corporate governance.  Kate has experience across a number of sectors and particular expertise in risk, governance and compliance and enforcement.

Kate served as a Commissioner for eight years at the Essential Services Commission (Victoria) including a five year term as Chair from 2019 to 30 June 2024 regulating a number of sectors in Victoria including energy, water, local government and transport and Victoria’s energy efficiency program.  Her leadership as Chair was key to the ESC becoming a stronger consumer-focused regulator with broader and more complex functions including a strong compliance and enforcement focus, particularly in the Victorian energy sector.

Prior to this, Kate held roles including as solicitor-assisting for the HIH Insurance Royal Commission, within the university sector and the Federal Court of Australia, and has worked in private legal practice both in Australia and overseas.

Kate has a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from the University of Adelaide, a Master of Public Administration from Flinders University, a Graduate Diploma of Applied Corporate Governance from the Governance Institute of Australia and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Matt Garbutt’s career spans senior roles in energy, the public sector and business. 

He joined the AER in February 2024 as the Executive General Manager AER Compliance, Enforcement & Surveillance and became Acting CEO on 1 August 2025. 

Matt has previously worked as the Executive Director, Energy Sector Reform Division for the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action where he was responsible for Victoria’s energy consumer policy, transmission and distribution network policy and wholesale market policy in the gas and electricity markets, and their associated compliance and enforcement frameworks.

Prior to that, Matt was a Director on the Post-2025 NEM market design review.  Matt has also worked for the Business Council of Australia as Chief of Staff, and the Department of Premier and Cabinet (Vic) and the Australian Government Treasury.

Matt holds a PhD in Physics and a Masters in Public Administration both from the University of Melbourne.