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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.


ELECTRICITY SUPPLY AMENDMENT (SOLAR BONUS SCHEME) BILL 2009





                            New South Wales




Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar
Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009


Contents

                                                                          Page
              1    Name of Act                                               2
              2    Commencement                                              2
     Schedule 1    Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94            3




b2009-097-31.d15
                           New South Wales




Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar
Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009
No     , 2009


A Bill for

An Act to amend the Electricity Supply Act 1995 in relation to renewable energy
generation by retail customers.
Clause 1      Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009




The Legislature of New South Wales enacts:                                        1

 1    Name of Act                                                                 2

           This Act is the Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme)      3
           Act 2009.                                                              4

 2    Commencement                                                                5

           This Act commences on a day or days to be appointed by proclamation.   6




Page 2
Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94                           Schedule 1




Schedule 1             Amendment of Electricity Supply Act                                 1
                       1995 No 94                                                          2

[1]   Section 15A                                                                          3

      Insert after section 15:                                                             4

      15A    Distribution network service providers to allow small renewable               5
             energy generators to feed-in to network                                       6

             (1)    The objects of this section are as follows:                            7
                    (a) to encourage and support persons who want to generate              8
                          renewable energy as a response to climate change,                9
                    (b) to develop jobs in the renewable energy sector by assisting       10
                          renewable energy generation to compete with                     11
                          non-renewable energy generation,                                12
                    (c) to increase public exposure to renewable energy                   13
                          technology in order to encourage the whole community to         14
                          respond to climate change.                                      15

             (2)    For the purposes of this section a generator is a complying           16
                    generator if the generator:                                           17
                    (a) is a solar photovoltaic generator, a wind turbine, or a           18
                          renewable energy generator of a class prescribed by the         19
                          regulations, that has a generating capacity of no more than     20
                          10 kilowatts, and                                               21
                    (b) is installed and connected to the distribution network in a       22
                          manner that provides for all the electricity generated by the   23
                          generator to be supplied to the distribution network and        24
                          allows the relevant distribution network service provider       25
                          to measure at any instant the amount of electricity             26
                          supplied, and                                                   27
                    (c) complies with, and is installed and connected in a manner         28
                          that complies with, any safety, technical or metering           29
                          requirements that may be prescribed by the regulations or       30
                          market operations rules.                                        31

             (3)    A distribution network service provider must, on application by       32
                    or on behalf of a small retail customer, provide customer             33
                    connection services so as to connect, or permit to be connected,      34
                    to its distribution network a complying generator if:                 35
                     (a) the generator is to be installed at premises that are in the     36
                            distribution network service provider's distribution          37
                            district, and                                                 38




                                                                              Page 3
               Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Schedule 1     Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94




                   (b)   the small retail customer has a right under section 15 to be     1
                         provided with customer connection services at those              2
                         premises.                                                        3

             (4)   The right that a person has under this section to have premises        4
                   provided with customer connection services is subject to any           5
                   provision of this Act or the regulations that authorises the           6
                   disconnection of those premises from, or the refusal to connect        7
                   those premises to, a distribution system.                              8

             (5)   A distribution network service provider must record a credit           9
                   against charges payable at the amount of $0.60 per kilowatt hour      10
                   in respect of a small retail customer for electricity that:           11
                    (a) is produced by a complying generator installed and               12
                          connected at the premises of the small retail customer, and    13
                   (b) is supplied to the distribution network by the small retail       14
                          customer.                                                      15

             (6)   A distribution network service provider must, in accordance with      16
                   the regulations, provide a retail supplier with:                      17
                    (a) details of the amount of credit that has been recorded under     18
                          this section for electricity supplied to the network by each   19
                          small retail customer of the retail supplier, and              20
                   (b) such other information as may be required to be supplied          21
                          by the regulations or the market operations rules.             22

             (7)   A distribution network service provider must provide to the           23
                   Minister and the Director-General a report within 28 days after       24
                   30 June and 31 December in each year that sets out:                   25
                   (a) the total number of small retail customers in the                 26
                         distribution network service provider's distribution district   27
                         who have installed and connected a complying generator,         28
                         and                                                             29
                   (b) the postcodes of those small retail customers, and                30
                   (c) the total generating capacity of all such generators in the       31
                         distribution district, and                                      32
                   (d) such information as is available to the distribution network      33
                         service provider about the amount of electricity supplied to    34
                         the distribution network by complying generators in the         35
                         distribution network service provider's distribution district   36
                         during each month for the 12 month period ending on             37
                         30 June or 31 December as the case may be, and                  38
                   (e) any other matter that may be prescribed by the regulations.       39




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Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94                             Schedule 1




             (8)    It is a condition of a distribution network service provider's           1
                    licence that the distribution network service provider must not          2
                    contravene this section.                                                 3

             (9)    This section is repealed on 31 December 2016.                            4

[2]   Sections 26 (1) and (3), 27 (1) and 30 (1) (a)                                         5

      Insert "or from" after "electricity to" wherever occurring.                            6

[3]   Section 29 Electricity meters                                                          7

      Insert "or received from" after "supplied to" in section 29 (1).                       8

[4]   Section 34A                                                                            9

      Insert after section 34:                                                              10

      34A    Retail suppliers to credit electricity supplied by small retail                11
             customers                                                                      12

             (1)    A retail supplier must, in accordance with the regulations (if any):    13
                    (a) pay a small retail customer an amount representing the              14
                           amount of any credit recorded under section 15A for              15
                           electricity supplied by the small retail customer, or            16
                    (b) reduce an amount payable by the small retail customer by            17
                           an amount representing that amount of credit.                    18

             (2)    It is a condition of a retail supplier's licence that the retail        19
                    supplier must not contravene this section.                              20

[5]   Section 63C Market operations rules                                                   21

      Insert "or generation" after "consumption" wherever occurring in section              22
      63C (1) (b)-(e).                                                                      23

[6]   Section 191 Regulations                                                               24

      Insert after section 191 (1A) (i):                                                    25
                      (j) the supply of electricity to the distribution network by          26
                           customers using renewable energy generators, including           27
                           but not limited to, requiring retail suppliers to acquire such   28
                           electricity from customers or classes of customers,              29
                     (k) any additional criteria that may have to be satisfied before       30
                           a credit can be recorded under section 15A.                      31




                                                                                Page 5
                Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Schedule 1         Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94




[7]   Section 194                                                                          1
      Omit the section. Insert instead:                                                    2

      194    Review of solar bonus scheme                                                  3

             (1)      The Minister is to review the solar bonus scheme (being the          4
                      scheme for the payment of electricity supplied to the network by     5
                      small retail customers using complying generators) to determine      6
                      whether the policy objectives of the scheme remain valid and         7
                      whether the terms of the Act remain appropriate for securing         8
                      those objectives.                                                    9

             (2)      The review is to be undertaken as soon as possible after            10
                      1 July 2012 or as soon as the Minister becomes aware that the       11
                      total generating capacity of all complying generators reaches       12
                      50 megawatts, whichever occurs first.                               13

             (3)      A report on the outcome of the review is to be tabled in each       14
                      House of Parliament.                                                15

[8]   Schedule 6 Savings, transitional and other provisions                               16

      Insert at the end of clause 1 (1):                                                  17
                    Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Act 2009            18

[9]   Schedule 6                                                                          19

      Insert at the end of the Schedule with appropriate Part and clause numbering:       20


      Part            Provisions consequent on enactment of                               21
                      Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar                                 22
                      Bonus Scheme) Act 2009                                              23

             Credits not to be recorded before commencement of scheme                     24

                      A distribution network service provider is not to record a credit   25
                      under section 15A in respect of electricity supplied before the     26
                      commencement of that section.                                       27

             Existing generator may be complying generator                                28

                      A generator installed before the commencement of section 15A        29
                      may be a complying generator.                                       30

             Existing net metering schemes to continue until transition day               31

             (1)      The gross feed-in credit of $0.60 per kilowatt hour that is         32
                      provided for by section 15A is to operate and be applied as a net   33




Page 6
Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94                            Schedule 1




                    feed-in credit for electricity supplied by a small retail customer      1
                    before the transition day in the following transitional cases:          2
                     (a) electricity supplied to the distribution network of Integral       3
                          Energy by a net feed-in generator that was first connected        4
                          to that distribution network before the commencement of           5
                          section 15A, or                                                   6
                    (b) electricity supplied to the distribution network of Country         7
                          Energy or EnergyAustralia by a net feed-in generator or a         8
                          complying generator (whether connected to the                     9
                          distribution network before or after the commencement of         10
                          section 15A).                                                    11

             (2)    This means that, in those transitional cases, the obligation under     12
                    section 15A of a distribution network service provider to record       13
                    a credit at the rate of $0.60 per kilowatt hour for electricity        14
                    produced by a complying generator and supplied to the                  15
                    distribution network of Country Energy, EnergyAustralia or             16
                    Integral Energy is an obligation to record a credit at that rate for   17
                    the net electricity supplied by the small retail customer (that is,    18
                    for electricity supplied in excess of that being used by the           19
                    customer).                                                             20

             (3)    Until the transition day, Country Energy or EnergyAustralia are        21
                    not required to provide customer connection services to a small        22
                    retail customer under section 15A in respect of a generator unless     23
                    the generator is installed and connected in a manner that enables      24
                    Country Energy or EnergyAustralia to record a credit for the net       25
                    electricity supplied by the small retail customer (that is, for        26
                    electricity supplied in excess of that being used by the customer).    27

             (4)    For the purposes of the operation of this clause (and the operation    28
                    of section 15A in accordance with this clause), a net feed-in          29
                    generator is taken to be a complying generator.                        30

             (5)    In this clause:                                                        31
                    net feed-in generator means a generator that would be a                32
                    complying generator but for the fact that it is installed and          33
                    connected in a manner that provides for some or all of the             34
                    electricity generated by the generator to be used by the small         35
                    retail customer (rather than being supplied to the distribution        36
                    network).                                                              37
                    transition day means 1 July 2010, or if another day is prescribed      38
                    by the regulations, that day.                                          39




                                                                               Page 7
                 Electricity Supply Amendment (Solar Bonus Scheme) Bill 2009

Schedule 1         Amendment of Electricity Supply Act 1995 No 94




             (6)      Different days may be prescribed under subclause (4) in respect       1
                      of Country Energy, EnergyAustralia or Integral Energy so that         2
                      the provisions of this clause apply differently in respect of each    3
                      of those bodies.                                                      4

[10]   Dictionary                                                                           5

       Insert in alphabetical order:                                                        6
                     complying generator--see section 15A (2).                              7

[11]   Dictionary, definition of "customer connection services"                             8

       Insert "or received from" after "supplied to" in paragraph (c).                      9

[12]   Dictionary, definition of "distribution system"                                     10

       Insert after paragraph (a):                                                         11
                    (a1) from the premises of small retail customers that have a           12
                           complying generator installed and connected from the            13
                           point of supply to the premises, or                             14

[13]   Dictionary, definition of "generating system"                                       15

       Insert "but, subject to the regulations, does not include a complying generator"    16
       after "distribution system".                                                        17




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