The contribution determination is about cost recovery under the NSW Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap (the Roadmap).
Under the NSW Electricity Infrastructure Investment Act 2020 (EII Act), we are required to make an annual contribution determination to ensure the Roadmap's independent Scheme Financial Vehicle has sufficient funds to meet its liabilities. These liabilities include, for example, the costs of network investment, the costs of underwriting new renewable generation, storage or firming investment, and the administration costs of Roadmap entities.
The NSW Distribution Network Service Providers are then required to pass the Roadmap costs through to NSW electricity consumers. The Roadmap’s contribution determination is a jurisdictional scheme under the National Electricity Rules.
To give effect to our regulatory functions under the EII Act, the contribution determination guideline sets out our process and method for making contribution determinations. Our method is operationalised through the contribution determination model.
We published a first iteration of the guideline and model in 2022. We completed a process to make minor revisions to the guideline in 2023. In 2024, we embarked on a further process to revise the guideline, principally to introduce some minor changes to the process for NSW scheme entities to submit the input data that underpins our contribution determinations.