The electricity transmission network pricing conference was held in Melbourne on 14 and 15 December 1998. The conference was jointly organised by the ACCC and the University of Melbourne to facilitate the debate regarding network pricing arrangements and nodal pricing options in particular.
The conference attracted over 80 participants, mainly representatives from local electricity market participants, and consulting firms that advise market participants or local customer and consumer groups.
Speakers at the conference included Professor Bill Hogan (John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University), Professor Frank Wolak (Stanford University), Dr James Bushnell (University of California Energy Institute), Dr Hugh Outhred (University of New South Wales), Conrad Edwards (transpower NZ), Dr John Small (University of Auckland), Carolyn Berry (FERC), and Sam Lovick (NECG) as well as a number of other local academics and market participants or advisers.
London Economics network pricing review
In September 1998 the ACCC engaged London Economics to undertake a review of electricity network pricing. The purpose of the review was to provide the ACCC with independent expert advice on the efficiency of the existing network pricing arrangements in the NEM and to provide proposals for improving these arrangements, both in the short term and in the longer term. Documents are attached below.
Network pricing issues paper
The ACCC released an issues paper relating to the network pricing Code changes, which NECA submitted to the ACCC on 26 July 1999 (and amended on 18 August) for authorisation and for acceptance as a variation to the access code.
The issues paper was intended to assist interested parties to participate in the ACCC's assessment of the authorisation application and the proposed variation to the access code.
The London Economics report examines nodal pricing and Transmission Congestion Contracts in the context of a longer term objective for the NEM. The paper also examines the efficiency implications of cost recovery for networks and those actions which can be implemented in the short term. These short term proposals could form part of a transitional path towards nodal pricing.
