Electricity Supply (General) Regulation 2014

This Regulation is the Electricity Supply (General) Regulation 2014.

This Regulation commences on 1 September 2014 and is required to be published on the NSW legislation website.

Note.

This Regulation replaces the Electricity Supply (General) Regulation 2001 which is repealed on 1 September 2014 by section 10(2) of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989.

In this Regulation—

approved auditor—

for Part 6, see clause 28, and

for Part 7, see clause 59B.

assessment—

for Part 6, Division 3, see clause 31, and

for Part 7, Division 2, see clause 62A.

biodiesel has the same meaning as it has in the Biofuels Act 2007.

biofuel means a liquid fuel derived from biomass and includes biodiesel and ethanol.

biogas means gaseous fuel derived or recovered from biomass.

biomass means organic matter other than fossilised organic matter.

business day means a day that is not a Saturday or a Sunday or a day that is wholly or partly a public holiday.

close associate means—

for a corporation—

a director or officer of the corporation, or

a related body corporate of the corporation, or

for an individual—a corporation of which the individual is a director or an officer.

corresponding scheme—

for Part 6, see clause 28, and

for Part 7, see clause 59B.

diesel fuel has the same meaning as it has in the Biofuels Act 2007.

energy ombudsman means the energy ombudsman appointed under an approved energy ombudsman scheme.

ethanol has the same meaning as it has in the Biofuels Act 2007.

insolvency official has the same meaning as it has in the National Energy Retail Law (NSW), Part 6.

liquefied petroleum gas has the same meaning as it has in the Gas and Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act 2017.

National Electricity Rules has the same meaning as it has in the National Electricity (NSW) Law.

National Energy Retail Rules has the same meaning as it has in the National Energy Retail Law (NSW).

natural gas has the same meaning as it has in the National Gas (NSW) Law.

onsite renewable energy means energy generated at the site at which it is used from a recognised energy saving activity using 1 or more of the following renewable energy sources—

solar,

wind,

geothermal aquifer,

hot dry rock,

hydro,

wave,

tide,

ocean.

related body corporate has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth.

residential premises means any premises or part of premises used or intended to be used as a place of residence, including a moveable dwelling (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 1993) or site on which a moveable dwelling is situated or intended to be situated (or both the moveable dwelling and the site), if the moveable dwelling is used or intended to be used as a place of residence.

scheduled bidirectional unit has the same meaning as in the National Electricity Rules.

Secretary means the Secretary of the Department.

the Act means the Electricity Supply Act 1995.

Note.

The Act and the Interpretation Act 1987 contain definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Regulation.

Notes included in this Regulation do not form part of this Regulation.

A customer consultative group appointed by a distributor is to be constituted in accordance with a charter approved by the Minister and, if it is so constituted, is not required to comply with section 90(1) or (2) of the Act.

Any such charter may also provide for other matters relating to the customer consultative group, including the procedure of the group (including meeting intervals), funding of the group and access to information by the group.

The requirements set out in this Division are distributor service standards.

Note.

The requirements of this Division are enforceable under the National Energy Retail Rules and are applicable to distributors within the meaning of the National Energy Retail Law (NSW).

A distributor who fails to provide a customer connection service (other than a connection service under Chapter 5A of the National Electricity Rules) on or before the date agreed between the distributor and a small customer or a small customer’s representative must pay to the customer, as compensation for the delay, not less than $60 for each day that elapses between the agreed date and the date on which the service is actually provided (up to a maximum total of $300).

This clause applies if a small customer is entitled to be provided with an energisation or re-energisation service by a distributor.

The distributor must energise or re-energise the small customer’s premises—

if the energisation or re-energisation request is made before 3pm on a business day, by not later than the end of the next business day, or

if the energisation or re-energisation request is made after 3pm on a business day, by not later than the end of the second business day following the day the request is made.

The distributor and the small customer may agree on a period longer than the period specified in subclause (2) as the period within which the premises are to be energised or re-energised.

The distributor is not required to energise or re-energise premises within a period specified by this clause if the relevant equipment is not in place to do so.

(Repealed)

If a retailer notifies a distributor that a small customer of the retailer wishes to arrange for de-energisation of the customer’s premises, the distributor must de-energise the premises within 2 days of the notice or within such further period as the customer requests.

If a retailer notifies a distributor that the retailer wishes to arrange for de-energisation of the small customer’s premises on a ground permitted under the National Energy Retail Rules, the distributor must de-energise the premises within 2 days (not including any day that is a protected period within the meaning of Part 6 of those Rules).

A distributor must issue a notice to a small customer when the distributor de-energises the customer’s premises at the request of a retailer on a ground permitted under the National Energy Retail Rules.

The notice must be in writing and contain the following information—

the matter for which premises were de-energised,

details of the telephone number of a contact person for the retailer,

the arrangements that are required to be made by the small customer for re-energisation of the premises, including any related costs payable by the customer,

the dispute resolution procedures available to the small customer, including contact details for the energy ombudsman.

A distributor who fails to repair faulty street lighting on or before the date agreed between a small customer and the distributor as the date by which the repair is to be completed must pay to the customer, as compensation for the loss of illumination, not less than $15.

This clause applies to street lighting that is owned by the distributor or that the distributor is under a legally enforceable obligation to maintain, but does not apply to street lighting to which the distributor merely supplies electricity or connection services.

This clause only applies to or in respect of a small customer if the customer’s premises abut the part of the street that (but for the fault) would ordinarily be illuminated by the street lighting.