Explanatory Statement
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Climate Change and Energy for the Treasurer
Competition and Consumer Act 2010
Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026
Legislative Authority
Section 172 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act) provides that the Governor General may make regulations prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
Part IIIAA of the Act establishes and regulates the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). Subsection 44AI(1) provides that a “State/Territory energy law or a local energy instrument” may confer functions or powers, or impose duties, on the AER for the purposes of that law or instrument. Subsection 44AI(3) provides that the AER cannot perform a duty or function, or exercise a power, under a State/Territory energy law or local energy instrument unless the conferral of the function or power, or the imposition of the duty, is in accordance with the Australian Energy Market Agreement (AEMO), or any other relevant agreement between the Commonwealth and the State or Territory concerned.
Subsection 4(1) of the Act provides that a “State/Territory energy law” means, among other things, “any other provisions of a law of a State or Territory that: are prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this paragraph”.
Purpose
The Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026 (the Regulations) amend section 7A of the Competition and Consumer Regulation 2010 (Principal Regulations), to prescribe Part 8A and Division 3A of Part 12 of the Electricity Safety Act 1998 (ESA) and any regulations made under it, as well as Part 3A of the National Electricity (Victoria) Act 2005 (NEVA) as ‘State/Territory energy law’, for the purposes of the Act.
The purpose of the Regulations is to authorise the ESA and the NEVA to confer functions or powers, or impose duties, on the AER.
This authorisation enables the AER to perform those functions or duties, or exercise those powers, so long as the conferral or imposition is in accordance with an agreement between the Commonwealth and Victoria.
For the purposes of the NEVA, the Regulations are necessary to give effect to certain provisions which confer the following duties on the AER:
- monitor VicGrid's compliance with NEVA, the National Electricity Rules (NER), and the National Electricity (Victoria) (VicGrid) Regulations 2025 (NEVR);
- undertake compliance and enforcement related to Victoria’s Renewable Energy Zone planning and connection authorisations to the transmission network;
- undertake information gathering activities; and
- assess and report on VicGrid's procurements of contestable augmentations of the Declared Shared Network under the NEVR, including the duty to prepare and publish procurement assessment guidelines, as required by section 66 of the NEVR and section 8.11 of the NER.
For the purposes of the ESA, the Regulations are necessary to give effect to certain provisions which confer the following duties on the AER:
- making determinations that identify resilience projects in Victoria;
- consulting with Energy Safe Victoria (ESV) in relation to variation of network resilience plans;
- disclosing information to the ESV, to ensure the AER and the ESV can share information in relation to network resilience plans; and
- collecting, using, disclosing or publishing information disclosed to the AER by the ESV. Information shared between the AER and ESV will not be personal or sensitive information, as it will not relate to individuals. The information will relate to distribution businesses’ projects and expenditure for the for the Electricity Distribution Price Review period, which will be published along with the AER’s determinations. Similarly, the distributors’ network resilience plans and reporting on progress against the plans will be published. In addition, the information will only relate to businesses, and will not include any personal information, so there will be no privacy concerns on the information-sharing arrangement.
The Act does not specify any conditions that need to be satisfied before the power to make the Regulations may be exercised.
Background
NEVA
In November 2025, Victoria's transmission network planning function transferred from the Australian Energy Market Operator to VicGrid, which is now responsible for coordinating the planning, procurement and development of transmission infrastructure in Victoria.
These reforms were given effect through the National Electricity (Victoria) Amendment (VicGrid Stage 2 Reform) Act 2025 (VicGrid Act), which amended the NEVA, and gave VicGrid and electricity corporations expanded powers to acquire easements, access private land, and reshape how transmission projects are delivered. The VicGrid Act has altered and added sections to the NEVA that have the effect of conferring the additional functions, powers and duties summarised above on the AER.
ESA
The Victorian Government, through the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, developed the Energy and Other Legislation Amendment (Resilience Reforms and Other Matters) Act 2026 (Resilience Act) which is an omnibus Act that amended several Victorian Acts to create legally enforceable obligation for distribution businesses to prepare and implement network resilience plans for the purpose of addressing power outages caused by extreme weather events. Among those Acts, the ESA was amended to confer new functions on the AER so that it can identify, via a determination, specific resilience projects that would reduce the risk or impact of severe weather-related power outages on consumers and meet its prudency and efficiency requirements. The AER would then be required to provide this determination to both ESV and the relevant distribution business. Distribution businesses with approved resilience projects will be required to prepare a network resilience plan. These plans, which must be accepted by ESV, will outline the measures businesses will take to prepare for and respond to severe weather events.
The Regulations are a necessary step to give effect to the reforms under the ESA and the NEVA to ensure the AER can undertake its new functions.
Impact and Effect
The Office of Impact Analysis has been consulted and advised that a Regulatory Impact Analysis was not required for the Regulations.
Consultation
Consultation was undertaken with Treasury, the AER, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action of Victoria, and the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Disallowance and Sunsetting
The Principal Regulations are exempt from sunsetting under table item 16(e) of section 12 of the Legislation (Exemptions and Other Matters) Regulation 2015 (Legislation Act), and by extension, the Regulations as they relate to the Principal Regulations, are also exempt from sunsetting. However, the Regulations are subject to the automatic repeal process under section 48A of the Legislation Act because the Regulations only amend another instrument. In addition, the Regulations are subject to disallowance under section 42 of the Legislation Act.
Therefore, if the Regulations are not disallowed, they will be automatically repealed at the end of the disallowance period by virtue of paragraph 48A(2)(aa). Once repealed, the sunsetting regime has no practical effect on the Regulations.
Other
Details of the Regulations are set out in Attachment A.
The Regulations are compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. A full statement of compatibility is set out in Attachment B.
The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
Authority: section 172 of the Act.
Attachment A
Details of the Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026
Section 1 – Name
This section provides that the name of the regulations is the Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026 (Regulations).
Section 2 – Commencement
This section provides for when the amendments made by the Regulations commence.
Schedule 1 to the Regulations commences the day after the instrument is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Section 3 – Authority
This section provides that the Regulations are made under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act).
Section 4 – Schedules
This section provides that each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to the Regulations is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule has effect according to its terms.
Schedule 1 – Amendments to the Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010
Item 1
This item inserts “Part 8A and Division 3A of Part 12 of the ESA and regulations made under that Act” as a new item 3.1A in section 7A in the Principal Regulations. This has the effect of prescribing Part 8A and Division 3A of Part 12 of the ESA, as well as regulations made under the ESA, for the purposes of the Act. This allows the relevant Parts of the ESA and the associated regulations to confer functions and powers, or impose duties, on the AER for the purposes of that law.
Item 2
This item inserts “3A” after “3,” in table item 3.2 in section 7A in the Principal Regulations. This has the effect of prescribing Part 3A of the NEVA in addition to the previously prescribed Parts, for the purposes of the Act. This allows the new Part 3A of the NEVA to confer functions and powers, or impose duties, on the AER for the purposes of that law.
ATTACHMENT B
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Legislative Instrument
The National Electricity (Victoria) Amendment (VicGrid Stage 2 Reform) Act 2025 (VicGrid Act) transferred Victoria’s transmission planning responsibilities from the Australian Energy Market Operator to VicGrid, expanding VicGrid’s and electricity corporations’ powers under the National Electricity (Victoria) Act 2005 (NEVA) to plan, procure and develop transmission infrastructure, including acquiring easements and accessing private land, while also giving the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) new related functions. Separately, the Energy and Other Legislation Amendment (Resilience Reforms and Other Matters) Act 2026 (Resilience Act) amended the Electricity Safety Act 1998 (ESA) to require distribution businesses to prepare network resilience plans addressing weather-related outages, with the AER determining which resilience projects meet prudency and efficiency requirements and providing those determinations to Energy Safe Victoria (ESV) and the relevant distributors. The Competition and Consumer Amendment (State/Territory Energy Law) Regulations 2026 (the Regulations) are now needed to operationalise these ESA and NEVA reforms and enable the AER to carry out its expanded responsibilities.
These Regulations amend section 7A of the Competition and Consumer Regulation 2010 (Principal Regulations), to prescribe Part 8A and Division 3A of Part 12 of the Electricity Safety Act 1998 and any regulations made under it, as well as Part 3A of the National Electricity (Victoria) Act 2005 as ‘State/Territory energy law’, for the purposes of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Act).
The purpose of the Regulations is to authorise the ESA and the NEVA to confer functions or powers, or impose duties, on the AER.
This authorisation enables the AER to perform those functions or duties, or exercise those powers, so long as the conferral or imposition is in accordance with an agreement between the Commonwealth and Victoria.
For the purposes of the NEVA, the Regulations are necessary to give effect to certain provisions which confer the following duties on the AER:
- monitor VicGrid's compliance with NEVA, the National Electricity Rules (NER), and the National Electricity (Victoria) (VicGrid) Regulations 2025 (NEVR);
- undertake compliance and enforcement related to Victoria’s Renewable Energy Zone planning and connection authorisations to the transmission network;
- undertake information gathering activities; and
- assess and report on VicGrid's procurements of contestable augmentations of the Declared Shared Network under the NEVR, including the duty to prepare and publish procurement assessment guidelines, as required by section 66 of the NEVR and section 8.11 of the NER.
For the purposes of the ESA, the Regulations are necessary to give effect to certain provisions which confer the following duties on the AER:
- making determinations that identify resilience projects in Victoria;
- consulting with Energy Safe Victoria (ESV) in relation to variation of network resilience plans;
- disclosing information to the ESV, to ensure the AER and the ESV can share information in relation to network resilience plans; and
- collecting, using, disclosing or publishing information disclosed to the AER by the ESV. Information shared between the AER and ESV will not be personal or sensitive information, as it will not relate to individuals. The information will relate to distribution businesses’ projects and expenditure for the for the Electricity Distribution Price Review period, which will be published along with the AER’s determinations. Similarly, the distributors’ network resilience plans and reporting on progress against the plans will be published. In addition, the information will only relate to businesses, and will not include any personal information, so there will be no privacy concerns on the information-sharing arrangement.
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.
The Hon. Chris Bowen MP
Minister for Climate Change and Energy
for the Treasurer