APA GasNet - Access arrangement 2013-17

Sector: 
Segment: 
Region: 
Commencement date: 
17 April 2012
Regulatory period: 
1 January 2013 - 31 December 2017 (5 years)
Status: 
Contact: 
General InquiriesAERInquiry@aer.gov.au
Overview:

APA GasNet Australia Pty Ltd (APA GasNet) submitted a revised gas access arrangement proposal for the Victorian gas transmission system to the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) for review, pursuant to APA GasNet’s obligations under the National Gas Law (NGL).

Under the NGL and National Gas Rules the AER has the function of reviewing and approving the terms of the Proposals. The Proposals contain the terms, including prices, under which the Service Providers propose to provide gas retailers with access to their networks for the period 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2017.  The AER assesses the terms of the Proposals against the National Gas Objective which is set out in the NGL. Following the review the AER must make a final decision to approve, or to refuse to approve a Proposal.

On 11 September 2012, the AER released its draft decision not to approve APA GasNet’s access arrangement proposal. The draft decision required APA GasNet to submit a revised access arrangement proposal to the AER by 9 November 2012. 

On 15 March 2013, the AER released its final decision not to approve APA GasNet's revised access arrangement proposal.  The AER will make a decision giving effect to its own proposal within two months of its final decision.

Access arrangements pre 2013

Previously, the gas distribution network access arrangements for APA GasNet were approved by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The current access arrangement runs until 31 December 2012.  

Milestones

Initiation

17 April 2012

Project administration - Access Arrangement Review indicative timetable

The AER was required to make an access arrangement final decision to approve or not approve the access arrangement proposal for the APA GasNet Victorian gas transmission system within six months of receipt of the access arrangement proposal. This period can be extended by the AER but must be completed within an absolute overall time limit of 13 months.

The AER is required to follow a prescribed decision making process under the National Gas Rules (NGR) when reviewing APA GasNet’s access arrangement. The following indicative timetable outlines key stages in the review process. It will be updated after each key stage of the review process.

Scheduled dates for key stages in the decision making process
Key stages in the decision making process Scheduled date

Publish proposal

17 April 2012

Submissions on proposal due

18 June 2012

Release of draft decision

10-14 September 2012

Revised proposal to be submitted

9 November 2012

Submissions on revised proposal due

January 2013

Release of final decision

March 2012

Proposal

2 April 2012

Access arrangement proposal (4)

Supporting information (26) - to access arrangement proposal

Ross Gersbach
APA Group
APA GasNet
APA GasNet
APA GasNet
AER
JP Kenny
APA Group
APA GasNet
R2A
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
KPMG
BIS Shrapnel
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Capital Research Pty Ltd (CR)
APA GasNet

Submissions (6) - to access arrangement proposal

The AER invited stakeholders to make a submission to APA GasNet's access arrangement proposal. Submissions closed on 18 June 2012. 

Draft decision

11 September 2012

Draft decision (6)

On 11 September 2012, the AER released its draft decision not to approve APA GasNet's access arrangement proposal. The draft decision requires APA GasNet to submit a revised access arrangement proposal to the AER by 9 November 2012.

Consultation paper (1)

On 9 October 2012, the AER released a Customer consultation paper on the Victorian gas access arrangement review. The consultation paper aims to assist customers and customer representative groups to understand the AER’s draft decisions on the access arrangements for the Victorian gas transmission and distribution businesses.

Revised proposal

20 November 2012

Supporting information (15) - to access arrangement proposal

APA Group
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC)
NERA Economic Consulting
Alan Gregory
SFG Consulting
Stephen Wright
Competition Economists Group (CEG)
Ernst & Young
Alan Gregory
M Fothergill
Clean Energy Regulator
BIS Shrapnel
Professor Borland
Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC)

Final decision

15 March 2013

Final decision (6)

On 15 March 2013, the AER released its final decision not to approve APA GasNet's revised access arrangement proposal. The AER has proposed a number of revisions to APA GasNet's access arrangement. The AER will make a decision giving effect to its own proposal within two months of this final decision.

The AER has also released a Guide to its review of gas network prices, to accompany and explain its final decisions. The purpose of this Guide is to make the AER’s decisions accessible to a wide ranging consumer audience.

Implementation

29 April 2013

Final access arrangement (3)

On 29 April 2013 the AER released its decision to approve the access arrangement (including the terms and conditions and access arrangement information) drafted by the AER for APA GasNet's gas transmission network for the regulatory period 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2017.