ACCC/AER Regulatory Conference 2025

8.55 am 

Welcome to Country 

Songwoman Maroochy Barambah 

9.05 am 

Opening address 

AER Chair Clare Savage 

9.25 am 

What is infrastructure?

Infrastructure is commonly defined as the physical and organisational structures and facilities needed for the operation of society or an economy – the building blocks underpinning people’s ability to thrive. But critical economic infrastructure is now more than just roads and utilities. Digitisation has transformed the world, and infrastructure is no longer just physical. The emergence of digital platforms, data centres and artificial intelligence has broadened the scope of infrastructure and blurred the lines between sectors. Does this now mean that ‘everything is infrastructure’? What are the implications for regulators and the future of infrastructure regulation?

Chair: Sarah Proudfoot – CEO, ACCC

Keynote address: Prof. Martin Cave – London School of Economics (UK)  

Discussant: Simon Corden – Chair, Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria

10.20 am 

Morning tea

10.45 am 

Interoperability: a silver bullet for digital markets?  

To open up tightly-held digital platform markets and bring greater choice to consumers, the European Union’s landmark Digital Markets Act requires ‘gatekeeper’ platforms to remove restrictions on interoperability – for example, ensuring app developers can access important functionality like contactless card payments made on mobile devices. Other jurisdictions have passed similar laws, and judges and regulators the world over are eyeing interoperability remedies.

Could these interoperability mandates be a ‘silver bullet’ for ensuring competition in these markets? Is it appropriate for regulators to be able to require interoperability, or should this power be limited to courts? How can we balance the procompetitive benefits of interoperability with privacy and security concerns?

Chair: Gina Cass-Gottlieb – Chair, ACCC

Keynote presentation: Margrethe Vestager – World Leaders Fellow, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford; former Executive Vice President, European Commission (Denmark) 

Speakers:

• Jacqueline Downes – Partner, Practice Group Leader, Competition, Consumer and Regulatory, Allens
• Damian Kassabgi – Chief Executive Officer, Tech Council of Australia 
• Ellis Connolly – Head of Payments Policy, Reserve Bank of Australia

11.45 am 

Pits and pipes to bits and bytes: regulating access to non-physical infrastructure 

Regulating access to essential facilities such as electricity networks, ports and rail is familiar ground for regulators and industry. However, more and more emerging markets are characterised by the need for competitors to access data, systems or other ‘virtual’ assets controlled by a single provider.

This panel will discuss conceptual and practical regulatory challenges posed by this ‘non-physical’ infrastructure, including through case studies of the Australian Stock Exchange’s upgrade to its Clearing House Electronic Sub-register System (CHESS) and Air Services Australia’s new OneSky air traffic control system.

Chair: Anna Brakey – Commissioner, ACCC

Speakers:

• Sarah Court – Deputy Chair, Australian Securities and Investment Commission  
• Dale Yeats – Senior Economist, Houston Kemp  
• Anna Barker – Assistant Secretary, Competition Taskforce, the Commonwealth Treasury

12.30 pm 

Lunch

1.30 pm 

Supporting innovation, reliability and affordability in the energy transition  

This session will consider how innovation can progress the energy transition in a way that ensures continuity of electricity supply and affordability for consumers.

The panel will explore where we are today, where we would like to go and how we propose to get there. It will discuss innovation in energy services and in business models for retailers and other intermediaries; the role of networks to maintain continuity of supply and minimise outages in an electricity grid with increasing two-way electricity flows; and innovation in customer services to keep energy affordable.   

Key questions will include how we can allow for ‘safe’ innovation; whether such innovation can be progressed within the existing regulatory frameworks; and how we can become comfortable regulating for what will be, rather than for what is, including the relevance of regulatory sandboxing.

Chair: Lynne Gallagher – Board Member, AER 

Speakers:

• Dr Philip Lewis – CEO, VaasaETT (Finland) 
• Danielle Beinart – Executive General Manager, Networks and Technical, Australian Energy Market Commission 
• Alison Reeve – Energy and Climate Change Program Director, Grattan Institute 
• Dr Kari Dahlgren – ARC DECRA Fellow and Lecturer in Anthropology, School of Social Sciences, Monash University 

2.15 pm 

Short term gain, long term pain: lower bills in economic regulation 

Is regulation striking the right balance over time? In a cost-of-living crisis, consumer groups have strengthened calls for lower bills. But with lower bills can come trade-offs, including reduced infrastructure investment and lower service standards. Are regulators asking the right questions when weighing up the short -and long-term interests of consumers, and are they getting the trade-offs right?

Chair: Catriona Lowe – Deputy Chair, ACCC

Speakers:

• Gerard Brody – Chair, Essential Services Commission 
• Sandra Gamble – Chair, Marinus Link 
• Cameron Shields – Head of Regulation, Sydney Desalination Plant 
• Sally McMahon – Commissioner, Australian Energy Market Commission 

3.00 pm 

Afternoon tea

3.30 pm 

Data sharing, AI and privacy in 2025 regulatory markets

The sheer pace of the development of AI, data collection and data use presents many challenges for regulators, market participants and consumers. The need for agility and rapid, effective responses is clear. But how do we balance the risks and ensure consumers benefit?

This practical session will focus on how energy regulators can regulate for and deploy AI effectively in their work while protecting consumers’ privacy and interests.

Is it preferable to move fast and implement changes, or to step back and wait for more certainty? Do regulators have the right tools to regulate for AI? And how can we ensure that regulators are forward-looking and focused on the right standards in data sharing?

Chair: Jarrod Ball – Deputy Chair, AER

Speakers:

• James Plunkett – formerly Chief Practices Officer, Nesta (UK)
• Prof. Jeannie Marie Paterson – Director, Centre for AI and Digital Ethics, University of Melbourne  
• Dr Ian Oppermann – Commonwealth Data Standards Chair, Co-founder ServiceGen, Industry Professor, University of Technology Sydney 

4.15 pm 

Getting to net zero – does speed trump competition?

Australia has committed to a target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, which requires the Australian energy market to transform how we generate, store and distribute energy. With 2024 being the hottest year recorded in over a century, it is clear this transformation needs to happen fast. 

This session will explore the tension between the need for speed in addressing the climate crisis and the need to ensure effective competition is maintained as the market transitions. The panel will consider this tension in the context of some of the many steps required in Australia's energy transition, including the roll-out of new energy services and certain infrastructure, such as kerbside electric vehicle chargers. As the planet continues to warm and the transition grows more urgent, the key question becomes: does speed trump competition?

Chair: Tim Jordan – Commissioner, Australian Energy Market Commission 

Speakers:

• Prof. Andrew Pitman AO – Climate Change Research Centre, University of NSW 
• Dr Will Taylor – Managing Director, NERA (New Zealand) 
• Dominique van den Berg – Chief Executive, Energy Networks Australia 
• Justin Oliver – Deputy Chair, AER 

5.00 pm 

Day 1 close

6.30 pm

Drinks and canapes

7.00 pm

Dinner welcome

Sarah Proudfoot – CEO, ACCC

9.00 am 

The future of gas in Australia

The future of gas is highly contentious and uncertain. Electrification will be a catch cry for the next 5 to 10 years at the very least, but this transition will be more achievable for some than others. And what is the longer-term role of gas in a net zero economy?

This session will explore perspectives on what this transition may look like for different participants, how the costs of the transition should be managed and the challenges that need to be tackled. Panellists will also share their views on what regulatory settings we need and how can we put them in place in time to make a difference.

Chair: Stephanie Jolly – Executive General Manager, Consumers, Policy and Markets, AER

Speakers:

• Steve Davies – Chief Executive Officer, Australian Pipelines and Gas Association 

• Mark Grenning – Director Policy and Regulation, EUAA 

• Catherine Wolthuizen – Energy and Water Ombudsman, Victoria 

• Darren Stevenson – Chief Executive Officer, Senex Energy

10.00 am 

Morning tea

10.30 am 

Sticking the landing: regulating essential services during uncertainty

When was the last time you bought a postage stamp with a dollar coin to mail a cheque for your landline bill? Many of the essential services that Australians rely upon are in decline. Letter volumes are falling, cash is being pushed out by electronic payments, and some insurance markets face increasing volatility and the prospect of spiralling premiums.

But these services, heavily reliant on mass participation, remain vital to their remaining users. This session will explore the regulation and pricing of services facing headwinds, and what regulators can to either ensure an inclusive transition, or support a brighter future for these essential services.

Chair: Nicole Ross – Executive General Manager, Infrastructure Division, ACCC

Speakers:

• Vanessa Beenders – Executive General Manager, Public Policy and Professionalism, Actuaries Institute  
• Dr Christopher Decker – Research Fellow, University of Oxford (UK)
• Kate Symons – Board Member, AER 
• Sam Grunhard – First Assistant Secretary, Communications Services & Consumer Division, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts

11.30 am 

The Great Debate 

12.15 pm 

Closing address 

ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb 

12.30 pm 

Close of conference and lunch