Question On Notice No. 2686 asked in the Legislative Council on 19 November 2019 by Hon Robin Chapple
Question Directed to the: Minister for Regional Development representing the Minister for Water
Parliament: 40 Session: 1
Question
(1) I
refer to the North West Gas Development (Woodside) Agreement 1979 and the water supply agreement that the joint venturers and the Water
Corporation have entered into in accordance with the Water Corporation’s major
consumers framework, and ask:
(a) will
the Minister please table a copy of the Water Supply Agreement, dated 2 August
2019;
(b) if no to (a), why not;
(c) will
the Minister provide details of the effective changes that will be made to the
current water supply arrangement; and
(d) if no to (c), why not?
(2) I
refer to the statement found in the Second Reading Speech on Thursday, 26
September 2019, "This replaces the existing rights and obligations of the
State, including the Water Corporation, and the joint venturers under the State
Agreement on water supply, and modernises the joint venturers’ water supply
arrangements in line with other resource companies operating in the
Pilbara", and ask:
(a) will
the Minister please list the other resource companies;
(b) are
the water supply arrangements contained in the other resource companies State
Agreements or in a separate agreement, as here;
(c) will
the Minister please provide details of how this Water Supply Agreement can be
varied; and
(d) if no to (c), why not?
Answered on 21 November 2019
(1)
(a) - (b)
The agreement is not currently in the public domain and contains sensitive commercial-in-confidence information.
The terms of this agreement are more commercial in nature than had previously been agreed and follow the Water Corporation’s Major Consumer Framework principles of full cost recovery from large customers. It brings the arrangements with the joint venturers in line with all other new and existing major water users.
(c) The agreement is consistent with the principles of the Water Corporation’s Major Consumers Framework (MCF). This framework ensures full cost recovery from large consumers.
Specifically the new agreement sets up contemporary commercial arrangements between Water Corporation and the joint venturers including pricing principles that better reflect the cost of providing this service now and into the future.
The term of the agreement has also been set to replace the previous opened ended arrangement.
(d) Not applicable.
(2)
(a) BHP
Rio Tinto Iron Ore
(b) In separate agreements
(c) The Water Supply Agreement can only be varied by:
· agreement of both parties, or
· changes in law
(d) Not applicable.