AEMC Final Determination in ‘Integrating price-responsive resources into the NEM’

Adding one more to the ‘Xmas Reading List*’ was the AEMC, in publishing its Final Determination last Thursday 19th December 2024 for the ‘Integrating price-responsive resources into the NEM’.

* a season-specific variation of the ‘if I had more time here’s something I’d like to read in detail’ List.

Here’s the PDF report:

… and there is plenty of other material on their sub-site here for Project ERC0352.

(A)  Much to read?

My vague recollection was that this process that used to be referred to as ‘Scheduled Lite’ (not to be confused with ‘SCADA Lite’, which is another process) … but it morphed into a longer name to perhaps be a bit less confusing (but I would ask … ‘were price responsive resources not already part of the NEM?’).

I have not really followed this process closely at all (other than being vaguely aware it was ongoing) so we’ll need to invest some time in the coming weeks and months in order to understand more – because:

1)  It might have some direct implications for some of our clients – who are price-responsive resources:

(a)  including some large energy users who we have been serving in facilitating a form of demand response for many years;

(b)  but also more recently a range of operators of <5MW supply-side resources that respond to spot prices, but are invisible to the AEMO.

2)  But also (more generally) it’s just one more in the growing number of rule changes that impose costs on our business (e.g. in keeping our ez2view software on top of the increasingly complex dispatch process … which our growing client base are increasingly grateful for):

(a)  Let’s hope that the AEMC’s justification is actually correct this time, and that there is a material benefit in the change

(b)  But forgive me for being somewhat skeptical, having learnt from experience that:

i.  Some rule changes prove wildly disappointing to some (or, in our case, moreso a confirmation of the sense up-front that it was going to be disappointing)

ii.  Whilst at the same time adding to the unfortunately confusing complexity of the NEM

… in this case I’m thinking of the Centralised Negawatt Dispatch Mechanism (a.k.a. the WDRM).

(B)  Media Release, and Media Coverage

Last Thursday to accompany the Final Determination there was a Media Release made by the AEMC ‘Energy market gets clear vision: Reform opens door for all to benefit from virtual power plants’ .. but for me that just raises more questions (as I’d been thinking that VPPs were already participating in some form?!)

I have not seen much mention of this in the media (but I’ve not really been looking either):

1)  But I did see that Sophie Vorrath had written ‘“Eye glasses for the grid:” New rules pave way for consumer energy to compete with coal and gas’ on Thursday 19th for RenewEconomy.

2)  If we belatedly spot anything else (and remember to do so) we might add them in here.

(C)  Key Dates

So quickly scanning materials, there seems to be a couple dates highlighted in Table 3 on page 14: