Publication
Pensions Regulator announces changes to the DC scheme return for 2024
The Regulator has issued an online announcement about upcoming changes to its DC scheme return.
Australia | Publication | October 2022
The Australian Energy Market Commission has announced initiatives that will remove the need for batteries to soften their square edges to fit within the round hole of regulation in the national electricity market (NEM). Changes set to come into play over the next 18 months, will improve the participation of batteries and ensure that they are better rewarded for their contributions.
The changes allow batteries, aggregate and hybrid generation arrangements to play a more central role in the decarbonisation of Australia’s energy system by providing a clearer pathway for them to complement intermittent renewable generation in the system. The changes aim to:
A brief summary of these developments is as follows:
(a) introducing a new ‘Integrated Resource Provider’ (IRP) registration category, which will allow storage and hybrids to register and participate in a single category;
(b) clarifying the scheduling obligations that apply to different configurations of hybrid systems and giving operators the flexibility to choose to be scheduled or semi-scheduled;
(c) enabling new aggregators of small generating units and/or storage units to register in the new IRP category and then enabling aggregators registered as IRPs to provide market ancillary services from generation to load (existing small generation aggregators will also be transferred to this new IRP category); and
(d) allowing for the recovery of non-energy costs based on a participant’s consumed and sent out energy over relevant intervals, regardless of the category in which it is registered.
The majority of these changes will come into effect on 3 June 2024, though some changes, including the ability of aggregators of small generating units and storage units to provide ancillary services, will be effective from 31 March 2023.
2. A final rule that creates new markets for Fast Frequency response by introducing two new market ancillary service categories for:
(a) the very fast raise service; and
(b) the very fast lower service.
The commencement of these new markets is set for 9 October 2023.
We are working with clients to navigate and exploit these new rules. Please contact us should you wish to know more.
Publication
The Regulator has issued an online announcement about upcoming changes to its DC scheme return.
Publication
On July 30, 2024, the Regulator published its market oversight report on how trustees are complying with their environmental, social and governance (ESG) duties, including in respect of climate change.
Publication
We reported last month that the Court of Appeal had agreed with the High Court’s previous judgment that all rule amendments to contracted-out DB schemes between 1997 and 2013 require written actuarial certification. Three pensions professional bodies have now issued a joint statement on the effect of the ruling.
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