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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 526 asked in the Legislative Council on 18 August 2021 by Hon Dr Steve Thomas

Parliament: 41 Session: 1

ENERGY POLICY WA

526. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the Minister for Energy:

I refer to the Minister for Energy's media release of 14 July 2021 on the $14.2 million boost to Energy Policy WA.

(1) How much of the announced $14.2 million is state investment?

(2) How much of the announced $14.2 million is private sector investment, and who are those companies or industries?

(3) Please provide a breakdown of what the $14.2 million investment in Energy Policy WA specifically consists of and what outcomes are expected to be delivered.

(4) What are the key performance indicators of this $14.2 million investment, how will they be assessed and who within government or industry will assess them?

Hon KYLE McGINN replied:

I thank the member for some notice of the question. The answer has been provided to me by the Minister for Regional Development representing the Minister for Energy.

(1) Approximately $8.2 million is funded by the state government.

(2) Approximately $6 million is funded by wholesale electricity market and gas services information participants, and Pilbara network operators, which includes Synergy and Horizon Power, along with private sector participants. It is not possible to determine the exact share of private sector participants as this is determined ex post facto, based on the fee allocation approach set out in the Wholesale Electricity Market Rules, the Gas Services Information Rules and the Pilbara Networks Rules.

(3) Energy Policy WA will deliver the following services: implementation of stage 2 of the Western Australian government's energy transformation strategy; implementation of the distributed energy resources road map; development of the second whole-of-system plan for the south west interconnected system; market development for the wholesale electricity market, the gas services information arrangements and the regulatory framework applying to electricity networks in the Pilbara; rule administration and rule-making for the Wholesale Electricity Market Rules, the Gas Services Information Rules and the Pilbara Networks Rules; policy and technical reviews under the Wholesale Electricity Market Rules; and continuation of the WA Advocacy for Consumers of Energy Grants Program. Energy Policy WA's work will contribute to the government's objective of delivering secure, reliable, sustainable and affordable energy services to Western Australian households and businesses.

(4) Energy Policy WA's overall performance is measured by two key performance indicators. The agency's key effectiveness indicator measures the extent to which policy and program development objectives for the year are achieved. The results are presented as a percentage of planned priorities completed. The agency's key efficiency indicator measures the average cost of policy and project development activities. This indicator measures the efficiency of Energy Policy WA in performing its role on an average cost per unit basis. The Auditor General undertakes an annual audit of Energy Policy WA's key performance indicators. The coordinator of energy—the head of Energy Policy WA—is required to annually publish information on the breakdown of its budget under the Wholesale Electricity Market Rules, the Gas Services Information Rules and the Pilbara Networks Rules. The coordinator of energy is also required to undertake an independent audit of its rule change activities under the wholesale electricity market every three years.

The PRESIDENT: I just take the opportunity to remind members of standing order 106 in relation to answers to questions and that they should be concise and relevant. Although I recognise that sometimes the question asked necessitates a long answer, I remind members of that standing order.