This section lists the principal statutory duties imposed and rights granted, with direct references to the specific provisions.
Duties of the distributor
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Licence compliance: comply with obligations imposed by regulation 4, regulation 7(1) and Part 5, as a condition of the distributor’s licence (regulation 3). This converts the Regulations’ duties into enforceable licence conditions.
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To attach, connect or provide SPS: where premises are not attached and a retailer seeks arrangements or a customer applies, the distributor must either attach or connect the premises to the distribution system or provide an SPS (regulation 4(1)-(2)). The distributor decides which of these to do, subject to meeting the requirements in regulation 5 and 5A.
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To extend the distribution system: if the distributor elects to attach or connect, the obligation includes an obligation to extend the distribution system to a suitable connection point (regulation 5(5)).
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To comply with technical capacity and standards: capacity and standard of any extension or SPS must be adequate for the supply required and in accordance with accepted good industry practice as it would be applied by a prudent distributor (regulation 5(6)).
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To impose preconditions within short windows: the distributor may, within two complete business days (for attach/connect) or five complete business days (for SPS), impose requirements for landowner consent, payment contracts and transportation contracts (regulations 5(2), 5(3), 5(4), 5A(1)-(3)). For energisation, the distributor may impose a requirement for a transportation contract before the energisation time limit (regulation 7(2)).
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To energise premises: where premises are attached but not energised, and a retailer applies and any distributor requirement has been satisfied, the distributor must energise the premises (regulation 7(1)).
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To give notice of proposed decommissioning: where a distributor proposes to decommission a distribution system or part, it must notify owners of premises attached and owners of premises satisfying the 100‑metre proximity rule before decommissioning (regulation 12(1)). Failure to notify does not prevent decommissioning, but the distributor is taken to have notified on the day of decommissioning if prior notice was not given (regulation 12(2)-(3)).
Rights of the distributor
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Power to require landowner agreement and payment: the distributor may require the agreement of landowners and a contract accepting liability to pay the distributor’s costs calculated under the relevant cost standard (regulations 5(4)(a)-(b), 5A(1)-(2)). The cost test differs according to whether the supply is via connection or via SPS (compare regulation 5(4)(b)(i) and regulation 5A(2)(a)).
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To require a transportation contract: the distributor may require entry into a contract for the transportation of electricity to be supplied through the connection or SPS (regulations 5(4)(c), 5A(3), 7(2)).
Rights of customers, retailers and owners
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Entitlement to supply action where the statutory trigger is met: customers consuming not more than 160 MWh per annum (regulation 2) or retailers seeking arrangements may compel the distributor to attach/connect or provide SPS if the extension required is not more than 100 metres and any conditions are satisfied (regulations 4, 5).
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Time‑bound performance by distributors: customers and retailers obtain specific timing rights: 20 business days for attachments/connections (regulation 6(2)), six months for SPS (regulation 6(2B)), and short energisation timeframes that differ by metropolitan status (regulation 8(2)). These timeframes create enforceable expectations under the licence condition in regulation 3.
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Decommissioning protections: owners of premises attached or within the 100‑metre rule receive 2 years’ advanced pricing protection if an arrangement is sought during a two‑year notice period, such that the distributor’s recoverable cost may be capped at the lesser of SPS and connection costs unless a greater amount is agreed (regulation 13(2)-(3)). Also, decommissioning does not eliminate the Part 3 entitlement for ten years following decommissioning (regulation 11).
Constraints and standards
- The Regulations repeatedly use a prudential standard reference: costs are to be computed in accordance with accepted good industry practice as applied by a prudent distributor (regulation 5(4)(b)(i)). For SPS, the phrase is "efficiently minimises costs in accordance with accepted good industry practice as it would be applied by a prudent distributor" (regulation 5A(2)(a)). Those standards are the metric by which recoverable costs are measured and, therefore, a natural focal point for any commercial or regulatory review of cost claims.
Procedural duties and limits
- Distributor notice is required before decommissioning but failure to notify does not stop decommissioning; however, the distributor is thereafter taken to have notified on the decommissioning day (regulation 12(2)-(3)). The distributor need not repeat notification for the same premises and proposal (regulation 12(4)).
Taken together, these duties and rights allocate operational control to distributors while giving applicants and premises owners discrete procedural rights and timing entitlements. The text balances distributor discretion with prescriptive procedural and temporal requirements, and it frames cost allocation through specified contractual preconditions and statutory cost standards (regulations 5, 5A, 6, 7, 8, 11-13).