AEMO has completed its review with stakeholders to identify improvements to the consultative forums and working groups, as flagged in the Engagement Model – Options Paper released last year.
Each year, AEMO hosts more than 50 forums and working groups related to energy market operations, system planning and markets functions. The outcomes of this review will help AEMO deliver a more collaborative, transparent, and dynamic experience for stakeholders engaging with AEMO.
AEMO Group Manager, Stakeholder Relations, Antara Mascarenhas, said that this important initiative reflects AEMO’s commitment to stakeholder engagement and transparency.
“For the last 12 months, we’ve gathered constructive feedback through meetings, forums and more than 40 submissions from members, energy participants, regulatory, community and consumer stakeholders on how to improve the forums and working groups we host,” Ms Mascarenhas said.
“AEMO presented three improvement options to stakeholders, who endorsed refining our existing suite of forums, including the greater transparency and joint problem-solving.
“AEMO is streamlining our NEM forums so stakeholders have a clearer sense of the purpose of each forum and how to get involved,” she said.
In response to feedback, three new stakeholder forums have been added to the new engagement model. These include the Financial Consultative Committee, Markets Forum and Energy Roundtable.
- Financial Consultation Committee
The new Financial Consultation Committee (FCC) has commenced operation and allows senior stakeholders from a representative cross section of AEMO’s members to consider AEMO’s draft and final budget each year, and to provide comprehensive feedback to the AEMO Board. The FCC commenced in April 2021.
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Markets Forum
The first east coast Markets Forum, in partnership with the AEMC and AER, will be held in August or September. The three market bodies will soon be seeking nominations from stakeholders. The Markets Forum will host collaborative discussion and information sharing between the market bodies, market participants and consumer representatives on emerging issues and the design and implementation of committed and potential future electricity and gas market reforms. It will include reforms that primarily stem from Energy Ministers, Energy Security Board (ESB) or AEMC processes and decisions.
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Energy Roundtable
This forum will be open to NEM and WEM market participants, jurisdictional observers and a representative group of consumer advocates. The bi-annual Energy roundtable will commence in late 2021, coordinated with the Annual General Meeting. Its objective is to enable opportunities for deeper, more timely engagement on key strategic issues and AEMO decisions that affect all our market participants. This will include socialising the direction of the annual Corporate Plan.
In Western Australia, our existing electricity and gas forums will continue. With the WA Government’s WEM Reform Program also well underway, AEMO will continue to collaborate, support and participate in the associated forums, steering committees and working groups.
Please visit our website to access stakeholder submissions. AEMO is now in the process of updating terms of references and webpages for the first priority tranche streamlined NEM of forums.
“Uplifting our forums is only one way we are improving our engagement with stakeholders. We continue to work to implement a more collaborative culture of engagement and transparency through our forums and throughout our business,” Ms Mascarenhas said.
Several staff are receiving facilitation training, and the whole business continues to work hard to improve the way we do things. A survey for each working group and forum will be sent to participants in the coming weeks, to enable us to benchmark against our improvements in 12 months’ time.
If you have any feedback or an idea, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on stakeholderrelations@aemo.com.au