The AER is required to make an access arrangement final decision within six months of receipt of Jemena’s proposal to approve or not approve the access arrangement proposal. This period can be extended by the AER but must be completed within 13 months. The AER is required to follow a prescribed decision making process under the National Gas Rules (NGR) when reviewing the access arrangement for the Jemena (NSW) Gas Networks. The indicative timetable outlines key stages in the review process.
| Milestone |
Date |
Indicative dates for key milestones in the decision making process
| Publish proposal |
15 September 2009 |
| Forum on proposal in Sydney* |
23 September 2009 |
| Submissions on proposal |
10 November 2009 |
| Release of draft decision |
Early February 2010 |
| Forum on draft decision in Sydney* |
Late February 2010 |
| Revised proposal to be submitted |
Mid March 2010 |
| Submissions on draft decision |
End April 2010 |
| Release of final decision |
End May 2010 |
*Steps not mandated under the NGR
Note: the AER has engaged consultants to assist it in its review different aspects of Jemena’s proposal including demand forecasts, operating expenditure and capital expenditure.
Stop the clock. The AER made the following decisions under rule 11 of the NGR.
Consultation process on access arrangement proposal. The AER decided that the period of 56 days for consultation on the proposal was not counted towards the decision making time for the full access arrangement final decision.
Consultation process on the draft decision. The AER decided that the period of 77 days for consultation on the draft decision was not counted towards the decision making time for the full access arrangement final decision. This also includes an overlapping period of 36 days for Jemena to submit a revised proposal.
Please note this timeline is subject to change.