The six entities are the National Electricity Market Management Company (NEMMCO), the Victorian Energy Networks Coroportion (operating in Victoria), the Electricity Supply Industry Planning Council (operating in South Australia), REMCo (operating in Western Australia and South Australia) and the Gas Market Company (operating in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory).
AEMO will incorporate all functions previously carried out by these organisations as well as multiple new functions. These include infrastructure planning for both electricity and gas, and the establishment of a short term trading market for gas in New South Wales and South Australia.
Its membership is split between government and industry, with government holding 60 per cent. Government members include the Queensland, New South Wales, Victorian, South Australian and Tasmanian state governments, the Commonwealth and the Australian Capital Territory.
In addition to the governments of participating jurisdictions, AEMO’s membership will include 40 per cent industry membership to facilitate transparency of its operations and to enhance its accountability to this stakeholder group.
AEMO’s creation follows a Council of Australian Governments’ decision in April 2007 to strengthen Australia’s national energy market governance arrangements.
“To create a new organisation to assume the functions of five existing market operators, in a little over two years and without disrupting existing market operations is an outstanding achievement,” said the Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson.
“AEMO will significantly enhance effective planning of the national power grid. This will become more important as federal laws for the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and the expanded renewable energy target change the Australian energy supply industry,” said the Victorian Energy and Resources Minister Peter Batchelor.
The AEMO website went live on 1 July 2009 and incorporates content previously held on the websites of its predecessor organisations.
