Div 2APrice regulation

Division 2A—Price regulation 35A—Price regulation by Commission (1) The Commission may make a determination under the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 regulating prices, conditions relating to prices and price-fixing factors for— (a) the sale and supply of electricity to small customers; (ba) the feeding‑in of electricity into a distribution network under Division 3AB; (c) subject to the National Electricity (South Australia) Law and the National Electricity Rules—network services; (d) other goods and services in the electricity supply industry specified by the Minister by notice in the Gazette. (2) In making a determination, the Commission must (in addition to having regard to the factors specified in the Essential Services Commission Act 2002) have regard to the principle that the prices charged to small customers for network services in relation to the transmission network in South Australia and the distribution networks that are connected to it should be at the same rates for all small customers regardless of their location. (2a) In addition to the requirements of section 25(4) of the Essential Services Commission Act 2002, the Commission must, in acting under subsection (1)(ba), have regard to the fair and reasonable value to a retailer of electricity fed into the network by qualifying customers within the meaning of Division 3AB. (3) The Minister may, by further notice in the Gazette, vary or revoke a notice under subsection (1)(d). (4) Despite the provisions of the Essential Services Commission Act 2002, the operation of a determination of a kind referred to in subsection (1)(a) is not to be stayed pending the determination of an application for review under Part 6 of that Act. 35B—Initial electricity pricing order (1) The Treasurer may issue an order (an electricity pricing order) regulating prices, conditions relating to prices and price-fixing factors for— (a) the sale and supply of electricity to non-contestable customers or customers of a prescribed class; (c) subject to the National Electricity (South Australia) Law and the National Electricity Code—network services; (d) other goods and services in the electricity supply industry. (2) The Treasurer must not issue an electricity pricing order after a date fixed by proclamation. (3) An electricity pricing order may regulate prices, conditions relating to prices or price-fixing factors in any manner the Treasurer considers appropriate, including— (a) fixing a price or the rate of increase or decrease in a price; (b) fixing a maximum price or maximum rate of increase or minimum rate of decrease in a maximum price; (c) fixing an average price for specified goods or services or an average rate of increase or decrease in an average price; (d) specifying pricing policies or principles; (e) specifying an amount determined by reference to a general price index, the cost of production, a rate of return on assets employed or any other specified factor; (f) specifying an amount determined by reference to quantity, location, period or other specified factor relevant to the supply of specified goods or services; (g) fixing a maximum revenue, or maximum rate of increase or minimum rate of decrease in maximum revenue, in relation to specified goods or services. (4) An electricity pricing order may provide that a calculation is to be performed, or a matter is to be determined, by the Commission in a manner specified by the order. (5) A determination of the Commission for the purposes of an electricity pricing order will not, except as provided in the order, be taken to be a determination for the purposes of the Essential Services Commission Act 2002. (6) An electricity pricing order may require an electricity entity to provide information to other electricity entities, customers or others, or generally publish information, relating to prices, conditions relating to prices or price-fixing factors. (7) An electricity pricing order— (a) takes effect on a date specified in the order; and (b) cannot be varied (except as contemplated by the order) or revoked. (8) Notice of the making of an electricity pricing order must be published— (a) in the Gazette; and (b) in a newspaper circulating generally in the State. (9) The notice must include a brief description of the nature and effect of the electricity pricing order and state how a copy of the order may be inspected or purchased. (10) The Treasurer must— (a) send a copy of an electricity pricing order to each licensed entity to which the order applies; and (b) ensure that copies of the order are available for inspection and purchase by members of the public. (10a) The following provisions apply in relation to the electricity pricing order notified in the Gazette on 11 October 1999 at page 1471: (a) despite subsection (7), the order is varied as proposed by the Treasurer by notice published in the Gazette on 28 June 2000 at page 3397 and is further varied as proposed by the Minister by notice published in the Gazette on 5 December 2002 at page 4458; (b) the Minister must ensure that copies of the order as so varied are sent to each licensed entity to which the order applies and are made available for inspection and purchase by members of the public; (c) a reference to the order in any document is, unless the context otherwise requires, to be taken to be a reference to the order as so varied. (11) An electricity entity must comply with an electricity pricing order or part of an electricity pricing order that applies to the entity. (12) The Commission must— (a) perform any functions that an electricity pricing order contemplates will be performed by the Commission for the purposes of the order; and (b) enforce an electricity pricing order in the same way as if it were a determination of the Commission under this Division. (13) The Commission's powers under this Division and the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 are restricted to the extent specified in an electricity pricing order. (14) In this section— price includes a price range. Division 3—Standard terms and conditions for sale or supply 36—Standard terms and conditions for sale or supply (1) An electricity entity may, from time to time, fix standard terms and conditions governing the sale or supply of electricity (including the service of making connections to a transmission or distribution network) by the entity to small customers or customers of a prescribed class. (2) An electricity entity must publish in the Gazette a notice setting out any standard terms and conditions fixed by the entity. (2a) An electricity entity must, when it publishes a notice in the Gazette under subsection (2), also publish a notice in a newspaper circulating generally in the State describing the general nature of the standard terms and conditions and advising where a person may read or obtain a copy of the standard terms and conditions. (3) Standard terms and conditions fixed under this section— (a) must comply with the conditions of the electricity entity's licence; and (b) come into force on the day specified by the electricity entity in the notice of the standard terms and conditions published in the Gazette under this section, being a day not earlier than the day on which the notice is published; and (c) when in force are contractually binding on the electricity entity and the class of customers to which the terms and conditions are expressed to apply; and (d) will, if they vary or exclude the operation of section 120(1) of the National Electricity Law, form an agreement between the electricity entity and each of the customers to which they are expressed to apply for the purposes of that section. (4) Subject to the conditions of an electricity entity's licence, a standard term or condition fixed under this section may be modified or excluded by express agreement between the entity and a customer of the entity. (5) An electricity entity that has fixed standard terms and conditions under this section must— (a) supply a copy of the standard terms and conditions, without charge, on request made to the entity at a place approved by the Commission; and (b) publish the standard terms and conditions on a website maintained by the entity. Division 3AA—Special provisions relating to small customers 36AA—Provision for standing contract with small customers (1) This section applies to an electricity entity holding a licence authorising the retailing of electricity that is declared by the Governor under this section to be an electricity entity to which this section applies. (2) It is a condition of the licence of an electricity entity to which this section applies that the entity must, at the request of a small customer, agree to sell electricity to the customer at the entity's standing contract price and subject to the entity's standing contract terms and conditions. (4) An entity is not required to sell electricity to a customer in compliance with the condition imposed under subsection (2) if the entity is entitled in accordance with the entity's standing contract terms and conditions to refuse to sell electricity to the customer. (4a) The following provisions apply in relation to the fixing by the Commission of a standing contract price for an entity for the purposes of this section: (a) the Commission may fix the price by a determination of a kind referred to in section 35A(1)(a); (b) a determination, other than a determination under paragraph (f), must provide for the expiry of the determination at the end of a period of not less than 3 years specified in the determination; (c) a determination may provide for prices that vary at specified times according to a formula specified in the determination; (d) unless the Commission determines that special circumstances exist— (i) a determination may not be made to take effect before the expiry date of the last preceding determination made by the Commission in accordance with this subsection; (ii) a determination may only be made if the entity has made a submission to the Commission stating the price that the entity proposes be fixed by the Commission as the entity's standing contract price, and the entity's justification for the price, not less than 6 months and not more than 9 months before the making of the determination; (iii) the Commission must, before making a determination, have conducted an inquiry under Part 7 of the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 into the question of the appropriate price to be fixed as the standing contract price; (e) a submission under paragraph (d) must comply with any requirements as to the form and content of such submissions imposed by the Commission by written notice served on the entity; (f) if the Commission has determined that special circumstances exist—the Commission may make a determination that takes effect as a variation of the existing determination (with effect for the balance of the term of the existing determination (unless another variation is subsequently made)). (5) The Governor may, by proclamation— (a) declare that this section applies to a specified electricity entity; and (b) vary or revoke such a declaration. (6) In this section— standing contract price, in relation to an entity and a customer, means— (a) the price fixed by the Commission in accordance with subsection (4a) as the entity's standing contract price for a class of customers to which the customer belongs; or (b) if there is no price for the time being fixed by the Commission as the entity's standard contract price in accordance with subsection (4a), the price fixed by the electricity pricing order under section 35B as at 31 December 2002 for the sale of electricity to non‑contestable customers; standing contract terms and conditions, in relation to an electricity entity, means terms and conditions that have been published by the electricity entity under section 36 as the entity's standing contract terms and conditions. (7) The Governor may, by proclamation, fix a day on which this section expires. 36AB—Provision for default contract with small customers (1) This section applies to an electricity entity holding a licence authorising the retailing of electricity that sells electricity to one or more small customers in South Australia. (2) It is a condition of the electricity entity's licence that the entity must, if the entity becomes bound, in accordance with the regulations, to sell electricity to a small customer under a default contract arrangement for a period specified in the regulations— (a) give the customer a written notice in accordance with the regulations; and (b) sell electricity to the customer at the entity's default contract price and subject to the entity's default contract terms and conditions for that period. (3) In this section— default contract price, in relation to an electricity entity, means whichever of the following is the price last fixed: (a) the price fixed for the sale of electricity to non-contestable customers by the electricity pricing order under section 35B immediately before 1 January 2003; (b) a price fixed by the entity as the entity's default contract price by notice published in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating generally in the State, where— (i) the price was fixed by the notice with effect from the end of the prescribed period from the date of publication of the notice; and (ii) the notice contained a statement of the entity's justification for the price; and (iii) the Commission did not, within the prescribed period, fix the entity's default contract price as referred to in paragraph (c); (c) a price fixed by the Commission as the entity's default contract price by a determination of a kind referred to in section 35A(1)(a); default contract terms and conditions means terms and conditions that have been published by the electricity entity under section 36 as the entity's default contract terms and conditions. Division 3AB—Feed‑in mechanisms 36AC—Interpretation (1) In this Division— excluded electricity means electricity generated by an excluded generator; excluded generator means a small photovoltaic generator that, in the opinion of the operator of a distribution network from which permission to connect the generator is sought, would, but for the fact that the generator is an excluded generator by virtue of this definition, be installed for the dominant purpose of feeding into the network electricity generated by the generator (and the fact that a generator is to be installed in a pair or group of generators may be evidence that the generator is an excluded generator); excluded network means a distribution network that supplies electricity to less than 10 000 domestic customers; prescribed amount means the amount determined for the purposes of this Division by the Commission in accordance with section 35A; qualifying customer—a small customer is a qualifying customer for the purposes of this Division; qualifying generator means a small photovoltaic generator— (a) that is operated by a qualifying customer; and (b) that complies with Australian Standard—AS 4777 (as in force from time to time or as substituted from time to time); and (c) that is connected to a distribution network in a manner that allows electricity generated by the small photovoltaic generator to be fed into the network; and (d) that is used in conjunction with a meter that complies with a code relating to meters published by the Commission and that falls within a class of meters approved by the Commission by notice in the Gazette, other than where the distribution network is an excluded network; small photovoltaic generator means a photovoltaic system with capacity up to 10kVA for a single phase connection and up to 30kVA for a three phase connection. (2) For the purposes of the definition of excluded generator, if there are 2 or more meters for measuring the consumption of electricity on a site owned or occupied by 1 customer, in assessing the purpose of the installation of a generator on the site to determine whether or not the generator is an excluded generator, the operator of the distribution network must take into account the electricity consumption of the customer on the site as a whole (despite the fact that, for example, most or all of the electricity consumption on the site is recorded by a different meter from the meter to which the generator is connected). 36AD—Feeding electricity into networks—requirements on holder of licence authorising retailing (1) It is a condition of the licence of the electricity entity that has the relevant contract to sell electricity as a retailer to a qualifying customer who feeds electricity generated by a qualifying generator into a distribution network, other than an excluded network, that the retailer will, after taking into account any requirements prescribed by the regulations— (a) credit against the charges payable by the qualifying customer for the sale of electricity to the qualifying customer the prescribed amount, or an amount determined by the retailer, being an amount greater than the prescribed amount, for electricity fed into the network in excess of the electricity used by the qualifying customer (after taking into account the operation of the following subsections); and (b) reflect the credits under paragraph (a) and section 36AE in the charges payable by the qualifying customer for the sale and supply of electricity; and (c) provide to the qualifying customer information relating to— (i) the amount of electricity fed into the distribution network by the qualifying customer; and (ii) the amounts to be credited for the benefit of the qualifying customer for electricity fed into the distribution network. (2) If the whole of the amounts to be credited to a qualifying customer under paragraph (a) and section 36AE(1) in respect of electricity fed into a distribution network in a particular billing period has not been set‑off against the charges payable by the qualifying customer for the supply of electricity at the end of that billing period, the qualifying customer is, subject to subsection (3), entitled to the payment of the outstanding balance. (3) A retailer may, in respect of any outstanding balance to which a qualifying customer is entitled under subsection (2), pay the balance— (a) at the end of the billing period referred to in subsection (2); or (b) not later than 1 year after the end of the billing period referred to in subsection (2) (but in such an event the retailer must pay all outstanding balances at that time). 36AE—Feeding electricity into networks—requirements on holder of licence authorising operation of distribution network (1) It is a condition of a licence authorising the operation of a distribution network, other than an excluded network, that the holder of the licence will— (a) allow a qualifying customer to feed into the network electricity generated by a qualifying generator (subject to complying with any relevant technical, safety or other requirements imposed by or under this or any other Act or any relevant instrument); and (b) credit against the charges payable by the qualifying customer for the supply of electricity to the qualifying customer the feed in price for electricity, other than excluded electricity, fed into the network under paragraph (a) in excess of the electricity used by the qualifying customer (after taking into account the operation of section 36AD and the following subsections); and (c) comply with any reporting requirements imposed by the Minister under subsection (7). (2) Subject to subsection (3), the holder of the licence authorising the operation of a distribution network is only required to credit a qualifying customer under subsection (1)(b) for the first 45kWh of electricity fed into the network each day (and the relevant electricity entity under section 36AD must reflect the relevant credit in giving effect to section 36AD(1)(b)). (3) For the purposes of subsection (2), the holder of the licence must average the electricity fed into the network by the qualifying customer over a billing period so as to determine an average daily feed‑in amount (and the amount so determined will be taken to be the daily amount fed into the network over the billing period). (4) If a qualifying customer receives credit under subsection (1)(b) in respect of 1 qualifying generator, the qualifying customer is not entitled to credit for any electricity generated by a second or subsequent qualifying generator of the qualifying customer (but nothing in this subsection prevents such a second or subsequent qualifying generator from being connected to a distribution network for the purposes of feeding electricity into the network). (5) A person is not eligible to receive a credit under this section— (a) on or after 1 October 2013 in respect of a generator (being a qualifying generator) unless the person is a Category 1 qualifying customer or a Category 2 qualifying customer in relation to that generator; or (b) on or after 1 October 2016 in respect of a generator (being a qualifying generator) unless the person is a Category 1 qualifying customer in relation to that generator. (6) If a generator is, on or after 1 October 2011— (a) subject to subsection (6a), altered in a manner that increases the capacity of the generator to generate electricity; or (b) disconnected and moved to another site, a credit under this section will not be payable from the date of the alteration or disconnection. (6a) If an alteration under subsection (6)(a)— (a) was approved before 1 October 2011 by the holder of the licence authorising the operation of a distribution network to which the generator is connected; and (b) is completed on or after 1 October 2011 and before 1 October 2013, the qualifying customer in relation to the generator will be taken to be a Category 2 qualifying customer for the purposes of this section. (7) The Minister may, in connection with the operation or administration of this section— (a) by notice in the Gazette, impose reporting requirements on the holders of licences authorising the operation of distribution networks; (b) by subsequent notice in the Gazette, vary any reporting requirements previously imposed under this subsection (including by the substitution or addition of requirements). (8) Subsections (1)(b), (2), (3) and (4) will not apply to electricity fed into a distribution network after 30 June 2028. (9) For the purposes of this section— (a) a Category 1 qualifying customer is a qualifying customer in relation to a qualifying generator where— (i) the generator is a qualifying generator before 1 October 2011; or (ii) a person, before 1 October 2011, has received permission to connect the generator to a distribution network from the holder of a licence authorising the operation of the network and has, within 120 days after 1 October 2011, made arrangements with the holder of the licence for a new meter to be installed on account of that connection; and (b) a Category 2 qualifying customer is a qualifying customer in relation to a qualifying generator where— (i) the person does not qualify to be a Category 1 qualifying customer under paragraph (a); but (ii) — (A) the generator is a qualifying generator on or after 1 October 2011 and before 1 October 2013; or (B) a person, before 1 October 2013, has received permission to connect the generator to a distribution network from the holder of a licence authorising the operation of the network and has, within 120 days after 1 October 2013, made arrangements with the holder of the licence for a new meter to be installed on account of that connection. (10) In this section— feed in price means— (a) in relation to a Category 1 qualifying customer with respect to a qualifying generator—$0.44 per kWh; (b) in relation to a Category 2 qualifying customer with respect to a qualifying generator—$0.16 per kWh. Division 3AC—Contestable services 36AF—Contestable services (1) This section applies in relation to the operation of a distribution network. (2) For the purposes of this section, a service will be taken to be contestable if a customer (or potential customer) may choose the provider of the relevant service. (3) The regulations may— (a) prescribe a class of services that are to be contestable (including a class that may be determined according to a prescribed class of customer or any other specified factor); and (b) specify procedures, qualifications, standards and other requirements (including requirements that provide for the preparation of specifications and the use of tenders or other competitive arrangements) that must be applied in relation to the provision of contestable services; and (c) require compliance with any requirement imposed by a prescribed person or body in relation to the provision of contestable services. (4) It is a condition of an electricity entity holding a licence authorising the operation of a distribution network that the entity must ensure compliance with any requirements imposed by regulations under subsection (3) (insofar as they apply in the circumstances).