Oilcode

The Oilcode came into effect on 1 March 2007 as a prescribed industry code of conduct under the Trade Practices Act 1974, known as the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 from 1 January 2011. The Oilcode forms part of the Australian Government’s Downstream Petroleum Reform Package.

This package included the:

• repeal of the Petroleum Retail Marketing Sites Act 1980
• repeal of the Petroleum Retail Marketing Franchise Act 1980
• prescription of the mandatory Oilcode under s.51AE of the Trade Practices Act.

For more information on the development of the Oilcode, refer to the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism website.

Section 3(2) of the Oilcode requires that a review of the Oilcode be undertaken after it has been in operation for 12 months. The Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism began this review in March 2008, a process that also included the release of an issue paper in April 2008 and a public consultation process to seek stakeholder views on the Oilcode. The ACCC made a submission to the review.

The Minister for Resources and Energy, the Hon. Martin Ferguson, released the Oilcode Review report on 24 August 2009. The report contains 11 recommendations.

The Government finalised its consideration of the recommendations contained in the Oilcode Review on 6 June 2011 and decided to accept all 11 recommendations. The Government Response can be found on the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism website.

Drafting instructions will be provided to the Office of Legislative Drafting and Publishing to commence the process to amend the Oilcode to implement recommendations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 9.

A further review of the Oilcode will be conducted in 2013 in accordance with recommendation 11.

Purpose of the Oilcode

The purpose of the Oilcode in general terms is to regulate the conduct of suppliers, distributors, and retailers in the downstream petroleum retail industry.

The Oilcode aims to:

• improve transparency in wholesale pricing and provide better access to declared petroleum products, as defined in the Oilcode, at a published terminal gate price (TGP)
• assist industry participants to make more informed decisions when entering, renewing or transferring a fuel re-selling agreement by requiring the disclosure of specific information
• improve the operating environment for all industry participants by providing access to a cost-effective and timely dispute resolution scheme as an alternative to litigation.

Complying with the Oilcode