Part 3Licensing of electricity entities

Part 3—Licensing of electricity entities 15—Exemptions from requirement to be licensed (1) A person who carries on operations in the electricity supply industry (the operator) is exempt from the requirement to hold a licence under the Act authorising the operations if the electricity in relation to which the operations are carried on is only for the consumption of 1 or more of the following: (a) the operator; (b) a designated body; (c) a person at premises occupied or used by the person as a tenant or licensee (whether directly or indirectly) of the operator or a designated body where that person is not charged for the supply of electricity except by an electricity entity or as an unspecified part of rent or charges for the occupation or use of the premises. (2) A person who carries on the generation of electricity is exempt from the requirement to hold a licence under the Act authorising the operations if— (a) the generating plant has a rated nameplate output of 100 kVA or less; or (b) the person does not supply electricity for reward to or by means of a transmission or distribution network. (3) A person who carries on operations as an inset network operator or inset network retailer is exempt from the requirement to hold a licence under the Act authorising the operations on the condition that an inset customer must have an effective right of access to a licensed retailer of the customer's choice. (5) An exemption under this regulation is (in addition to any other condition to which it is expressed to be subject under this regulation) subject to the condition that the person comply with any requirement imposed by or under the Act, these regulations, the National Electricity Rules or a code made by the Commission under the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 as if the person were an electricity entity authorised by a licence to carry on the operations to which the exemption relates. (6) An exemption from subregulation (5), or from specified requirements referred to in that subregulation, may be granted by— (a) in relation to Part 6 of the Act or Part 10, Part 11 and Part 12 of these regulations or any safety requirement—the Technical Regulator, on terms and conditions the Technical Regulator considers appropriate; or (b) in any other case—the Commission, on terms and conditions the Commission considers appropriate. (7) For the purposes of this regulation, an inset customer has an effective right of access to a licensed retailer of the customer's choice only if the customer may— (a) have access to and use the inset network for the purpose of consuming electricity purchased by the customer from a licensed retailer of the customer's choice; and (b) install, maintain and use meters and other equipment necessary for that purpose, without any charge being payable by the customer (other than to the licensed retailer) or by the licensed retailer. (8) In this regulation— community or strata title premises means premises the subject of the same community plan under the Community Titles Act 1996 or the same strata plan under the Strata Titles Act 1988; designated body means a body or group of persons designated by the Minister by notice in the Gazette; inset customer, in relation to an inset network, means a person (other than the inset network operator or the inset network retailer) who has or seeks a supply of electricity from the inset network; inset network means a transmission or distribution network that serves only a group of premises in the same ownership or community or strata title premises; inset network operator means a person who operates an inset network; inset network retailer means a person (other than an electricity entity) who retails electricity supplied through an inset network; licensed retailer means an electricity entity licensed to retail electricity; premises includes part of premises. (9) The Minister may— (a) by notice in the Gazette, designate a body or group of persons for the purposes of the definition of designated body; and 16—Licence fees and returns (1) For the purposes of section 20(2) of the Act, the licence fee, or the first instalment of the licence fee, (as the case may require) must be paid before the anniversary in each year of the day on which the licence was issued. (2) For the purposes of section 20(2) of the Act, an annual return must be lodged before 31 August in each year. (3) For the purposes of section 20(5) of the Act, the penalty for default— (a) for failing to pay a licence fee, or an instalment of a licence fee, is 10% per annum of the outstanding amount calculated daily on a cumulative basis; (b) for failing to lodge an annual return is $500. (4) The following costs are prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (d) of the definition of administrative costs in section 20(7) of the Act: (a) the costs of any committee established for the purpose of advising the Minister in relation to the preparation of programs for the undergrounding of powerlines under section 58A of the Act; (b) the costs of administration of the Energy Products (Safety and Efficiency) Act 2000; (c) the costs of administration of the Australian Energy Market Commission in relation to the electricity supply industry in South Australia in the financial year to which the licence relates. 17—Consideration of application for licence Pursuant to section 17(3)(d) of the Act, the following are prescribed as matters that the Commission may consider in deciding whether an applicant is a suitable person to hold a licence authorising the retailing of electricity: (a) whether the applicant holds or has held such a licence; (b) if the applicant holds such a licence—the duration of contracts for the retailing of electricity entered into by the applicant; (c) if the applicant holds or has held such a licence—whether the applicant has been guilty of a contravention of a condition of the licence or any other contravention of a requirement imposed by or under the Act in connection with the operations authorised by the licence. 17A—Prescribed condition—use of prepayment meter system (1) In accordance with section 21(2) of the Act, the Commission is required to impose on the relevant licence the condition that the holder of the licence only sell electricity to prescribed customers using a prepayment meter system. (2) This regulation applies in relation to the relevant licence despite the fact that it was issued before the commencement of this regulation. (3) Despite subregulation (1), the Minister may grant the holder of the relevant licence an exemption from complying with the condition applying under that subregulation in relation to the supply of electricity to a specified prescribed customer, or a prescribed customer of a specified class. (4) An exemption under subregulation (3)— (a) may be granted subject to specified conditions; and (b) may be varied or revoked by the Minister. (5) In this regulation— excluded customer means a small customer who is required under a contract for the sale of electricity in a prescribed area in force immediately before the commencement of the Electricity (General) (Payment Condition) Variation Regulations 2021 to pay for electricity supplied under the contract; prepayment meter system has the same meaning as in the National Energy Retail Law; prescribed area means— (a) Trust Land within the meaning of the Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 2013; or (b) "the lands" within the meaning of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act 1981; or (c) "the lands" within the meaning of the Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights Act 1984; prescribed customer means a small customer supplied (or seeking the supply of) electricity in a prescribed area, other than an excluded customer; relevant licence means the licence authorising the retailing of electricity under the Act to prescribed customers. 17B—Prescribed conditions—designated services (1) In accordance with section 21(2) of the Act, the Commission is required to impose the following conditions on the following licences: (a) on the relevant distribution licence—the condition that the holder of the licence procure, for the amount and in the instalments set out in subregulation (2), designated services from the holder of the relevant generation licence; (b) on the relevant generation licence—the condition that the holder of the licence provide designated services to the holder of the distribution licence. (2) The amount for which designated services are to be procured in accordance with the condition that the Commission is required to impose under subregulation (1)(a) is $19.5 million paid in the following instalments: (a) one‑third of the amount is to be paid on or before 30 June 2023; (b) one‑third of the amount is to be paid on or before 30 June 2024; (c) one‑third of the amount is to be paid on or before 30 June 2025. (3) If the holder of the relevant generation licence fails at any time during the prescribed period to provide designated services as required by that licence— (a) the holder of the relevant distribution licence will not be taken to breach the condition that is required to be imposed by the Commission under subregulation (1)(a) on account of the failure; and (b) no liability attaches to the holder of the relevant distribution licence on account of the failure. (4) This regulation applies in relation to the relevant distribution licence and the relevant generation licence despite the fact that each licence was issued before the commencement of this regulation. (5) In this regulation— designated services means services to maintain Torrens Island Power Station Unit B2 as an available and functioning electricity generating plant during the prescribed period; The continued operation of Torrens Island Power Station Unit B2 during the prescribed period contributes to the secure and reliable operation of the State's power system. prescribed period means 1 September 2023 to 30 June 2026 (inclusive); relevant distribution licence means the licence under the Act authorising the operation of a distribution network held by an electricity entity that is a network service provider (within the meaning of the National Electricity (South Australia) Law) that owns, controls or operates a distribution system; relevant generation licence means the licence under the Act authorising the generation of electricity and under which Torrens Island Power Station Unit B2 is operated. 18—Prescribed class of customers for purposes of section 24(2)(b) of Act For the purposes of section 24(2)(b) of the Act, each small customer is a customer of a prescribed class. 19—Prescribed date for purposes of section 24(2)(d) of Act For the purposes of section 24(2)(d) of the Act, 1 July 2004 is the prescribed date. 20—Prescribed information in small customer accounts for purposes of section 24(2)(da) of Act For the purposes of section 24(2)(da) of the Act, the following provisions apply: (a) the electricity entity must include in each account for electricity charges sent to a small customer for electricity supply through a particular metered connection point the following information: (i) the customer's average daily consumption level, expressed in kW.h, of electricity supplied through the connection point for the period to which the account relates; (ii) the customer's average daily consumption level, expressed in kW.h, of electricity supplied through the connection point for each period during the preceding 12 months in respect of which the customer was sent by the entity an account for electricity supply through the connection point; (iii) the average daily cost to the customer of electricity supplied to the customer through the connection point during the period to which the account relates; (b) the electricity entity must also include in each account for electricity charges sent to a small customer the following statement: For more information about energy efficiency, visit or call ........................ [telephone number as specified by the Commission by written notice to the entity]. 21—Ombudsman scheme For the purposes of sections 23(1)(k) and 24(2)(l) of the Act, the gas supply industry is prescribed. 21A—Variation of licences by Commission In accordance with section 98(2)(e) of the Act, the Commission is, in varying the conditions of a licence for the purpose of complying with regulation 17A(1) or 17B(1), exempt from the application of section 27(2) of the Act. 21B—Exemption from consultation with consumer bodies In accordance with section 98(2)(e) of the Act, the Commission is, in varying the conditions of a licence for the purpose of complying with regulation 17B(1), exempt from the application of section 28A of the Act.