The AER was required to make an access arrangement final decision within six months of receipt of APT Allgas’s proposal to approve or not approve the access arrangement proposal. This period was extendable by the AER but only out to 13 months after receipt of the proposal.
The AER is required to follow a prescribed decision making process under the National Gas Rules (NGR) when reviewing the access arrangement for the APT Allgas distribution network. The following indicative timetable outlines key stages in the review process.
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Publish proposal | 21 October 2010 |
| Forum on proposal in Brisbane* | 28 October 2010 |
| Submissions on proposal due | 26 November 2010 |
| Release of draft decision | 17 February 2011 |
| Forum on draft decision in Brisbane* | 1 March 2011 |
| Revised proposal to be submitted | 23 March 2011 |
| Submission on draft decision | 27 April 2010 |
| Release of final decision | early June 2011 |
*Steps not mandated under the NGR.
Consultation process on access arrangement proposal
The AER has engaged consultants to assist it in its review of different aspects of APT Allgas’s proposal including demand forecasts, operating expenditure and capital expenditure.
Stop the clock
The AER has decided under rule 11 of the NGR that the period of 36 days for consultation on the access arrangement proposal is not counted towards the decision making time for the full access arrangement final decision.