Background
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) is required to undertake a review of the Western Australian Gas Bulletin Board (GBB) Zones at least once every five years. The last review under sub-rule 82(10) of the GSI Rules was undertaken in 2015. AEMO has commenced the 2020 GBB Zones review.
AEMO developed a draft report which presented the preliminary outcomes of the 2020 GBB Zones review and what changes may be required to the current Zones, and whether the information presented by Zones promotes the Gas Services Information objectives (GSI Objectives).
AEMO’s preliminary findings are that the current GBB Zones List meets the requirements of the GSI Rules and does not require any changes to improve effectiveness. AEMO recommends the current GBB Zones List be retained until the next five yearly review, or until there is a material change in the WA gas market that warrants reconsideration of the Zones under sub-Rule 82(10) of the GSI Rules.
AEMO is sought feedback from stakeholders on the preliminary findings of this review in accordance with sub-rule 82(11) of the GSI Rules before it was finalised.
Public Consultation and Submissions
To help inform the final report and test the preliminary findings, AEMO invited all interested parties to submit their views on the appropriateness of the current GBB Zones List, and any reasons why changes to the current Zones may be required. Stakeholders were asked to consider the following questions:
- Does the information aggregation/segregation of the current Zones provide meaningful information?
- How could the presentation of Zones data be improved?
- Are there any future gas developments that may impact the future accuracy and/or granularity of information provided by the current Zones?
AEMO welcomed feedback on the level of analysis provided in the draft report, and any other analysis stakeholders considered would be useful as part of this review and future GBB Zones List reviews.
Written submissions closed on Friday 23/10/2020.
Public Workshop
AEMO invited all interested parties to attend a public workshop on the draft report (held by teleconference) on Thursday 15/10/2020. The objective of the workshop was to discuss the draft report and preliminary findings.
Final Report
Feedback from consultation, stakeholder submissions and any additional analysis conducted by AEMO was considered and included in the final report published on 11 November 2020. AEMO presented the findings at the November WA Gas Consultative Forum held on 11 November 2020.