Gas transmission pipeline and network companies have published new information on services and pricing to assist commercial negotiations with customers.
The additional information is a key change developed over the past 12 months aimed at improving transparency and liquidity in Australia’s gas markets. It was developed by the Gas Market Reform Group and approved by the COAG Energy Council.
APGA Chief Executive Officer, Steve Davies, said the information would assist pipeline and network customers to form their own view on the reasonableness of pricing and service offerings.
“These reforms put significant new tools to users of gas transportation markets in Australia. This will lead to more efficient commercially negotiated outcomes.
“These reforms will help ensure that gas transmission prices remain a small component of the overall price of gas delivered to homes and businesses.
“As the Department of Environment and Energy’s Gas Price Trends Review 2017 published this week showed, gas transmission charges account for an average of seven per cent of the total gas bill for residential and commercial customers, and are well under 15 per cent of the total gas bill for most large industrial customers and power generators.”
The reforms would not alter the fact that contracts for transmission of gas from production fields to customers would still be individually negotiated.
“It’s important to recognise that many factors affect a final agreed price in every contract,” Mr Davies said.
“These factors include the duration of the contract, volumes to be transported, load profile and credit rating of the customer and these will be different for every pipeline and every customer.”
The gas transmission and network industries provide services to Australia’s gas markets and are specialist infrastructure owners transporting gas for retailers, power generators, manufacturers, industrial mining users.
