Under the Retailer Reliability Obligation (RRO), liable entities are subject to contracting and reporting requirements if a reliability instrument is made.
Liable entities are Market Customers (including most retailers) or Integrated Resource Providers whose aggregate consumption of electricity in a region exceeds 10 GWh per annum. In certain circumstances, other customers may be eligible to opt-in to the RRO rather than having their retailer manage the obligation on their behalf.
An opt-in customer will be a liable entity for the relevant reliability instrument if its application is approved by the AER:
- A registered opt-in customer will be required to report their net contract position for a forecast reliability gap period to the AER. Reports must be submitted in accordance with the National Electricity Rules, and lodged in accordance with, and in the form specified by, the AER’s Contracts and Firmness Guidelines.
- In the event that peak demand exceeds the one-in-two year peak demand forecast for one or more trading intervals in a reliability gap period, and a registered opt-in customer’s share of load is not covered by their reported net contract position for those trading intervals, the opt-in customer will be required to pay a portion of the costs for the Procurer of Last Resort.
Information for opt-in customers and applicants
On 30 June 2020 we published the final Opt-In Guidelines, which sets out information on the opt-in process, including the processes for registering, deregistering or amending registration, and the criteria for assessing opt-in eligibility. A factsheet outlining key dates and information is also available.
Minor, administrative changes were made to the Opt-In Guidelines in October 2024 to account for the Integrating Energy Storage Systems rule change.
Applications and enquiries about the opt-in application process can be sent to RRO
aer [dot] gov [dot] au (RRO[at]aer[dot]gov[dot]au).