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The situation with Coronavirus (COVID-19) is an unprecedented global and national health crisis.
As mentioned previously, Essential Energy has enacted its Pandemic Management Plan and established a Pandemic Preparedness Team (PPT) to proactively manage our organisational response.
To assist Essential Energy’s response to the COVID-19 crisis we have developed critical controls to minimise the risk of exposure to COVID-19 when interacting with third party associates in warehouse and store locations.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the necessary controls put in place may limit Essential Energys warehouses’ ability to provide sales service to Accredited Service Providers. This will present the following constraints on the sales process:
-
Order Processing: please provide the outage date when placing orders for Planned Outages which are deemed High Priority – a member of our External Sales team will contact you to discuss restrictions prior to processing the order.
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Cancelled Orders: if an outage is cancelled you will be unable to return products to Essential Energy’s warehouses.
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Quotes: will be processed as normal, lead time may not be available for items not in stock, this will depend on the supplier and the precautions they have in place for supplying of items. We can’t guarantee the shipments from our suppliers.
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Direct Delivery Orders/ Drop Ship Orders: will be placed on supplier’s, with the delivery date confirmed when the order is acknowledged by the supplier. This will depend on the supplier and the precautions they have in place for supplying of items under COVID-19.
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Pick-up from Warehouse Locations: protocol must be followed strictly - saved under documents on Essential Engagement.
Due of the constraints above we encourage our ASP Partners to engage their upstream suppliers directly for material orders.
If you require any further information or assistance, please email external.sales@essentialenergy.com.au.
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What is Happening?
As an organisation delivering critical services to communities across NSW and employing thousands of people across the State, it is crucial for rural, regional and remote NSW that Essential Energy responds effectively to COVID-19.
Essential Energy has enacted its Pandemic Management Plan and established a Pandemic Preparedness Team (PPT) to proactively manage our organisational response.
In line with our Pandemic Management Plan, the objectives guiding Essential Energy’s ongoing response are to:
- Protect the health and wellbeing of Essential Energy employees, contractors, suppliers and the community;
- Minimise the risk of Essential Energy being a source of infection for employees and the broader community; and
- Reduce the risk of operational disruption to Essential Energy and Essential Water.
To ensure appropriate social distancing is maintained many of Essential Energy’s employees are working from home, where operationally possible, this includes members of the Asset Management and Engineering division.
The Design and Certification team will be transitioning to working from home over the coming days. Throughout the next few weeks, as we continue to implement our measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, we ask you to please correspond with the individual team members via the group email address contestableworks@essentialenergy.com.au, or, directly with the team via their individual email.
The Contestable Connections team are also beginning to work from home and should be contacted via their individual email.
At this stage the Technical Enquiries team remain available via phone on the enquiries number.
We assure you that the team will be doing their best to ensure there is minimal impact on Contestable Works, and will continue to keep you updated on any further changes as the pandemic continues.
Thank you for your understanding.
What do you need to do?
Communicate this information to relevant members of your organisation
Further Information
If you need further information, please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
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What is Happening?
Essential Energy recognises the impact that the decision to cancel planned work may have on ASP businesses. These decisions were made with consideration of the available research and recommendations on COVID-19, including from the Commonwealth and NSW Governments and health authorities.
We have dedicated resources who are tasked with constantly reviewing the business response to COVID-19 and we are committed to complying with advice from all levels of Government, which is frequently changing to adapt with the circumstances. Our focus remains on the health and well-being of our employees, the community, our contractors and suppliers, and particularly on limiting the spread of the virus to vulnerable groups.
We can confirm that a risk management framework has now been developed which will allow us to identify how planned outage work may proceed with the inclusion of additional control measures. It should be noted that we need to balance the potential impact of any planned outage on our customers, especially those who are vulnerable, on life support, or in self-isolation.
We will provide more detail around the framework as soon as possible.
What you need to do?
- Talk with your Network Assurance Facilitator (NAF) in your area.
- Communicate this information to relevant members of your organisation.
Further Information
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
What is Happening?
As an employer of more than 3,000 people located throughout the State delivering critical services to communities across NSW, it is vital that Essential Energy responds effectively to the unfolding Coronavirus (COVID19) crisis.
Essential Energy has enacted its Pandemic Management Plan and established a Pandemic Preparedness Team (PPT) to proactively manage our organisational response.
The PPT, made up of representatives from across our business, is meeting daily and will continue to meet throughout the crisis as it unfolds. The PPT is continually monitoring and assessing COVID-19 developments and recommendations, including from the Commonwealth and NSW governments, in order to shape an effective business response.
This has led us to enact some specific control measures for our frontline staff, office-based workers and across the network.
As part of our response to minimise the impact and spread of COVID-19, Essential Energy is suspending all planned outages, including those that involve ASP work, from Wednesday 18 March 2020, until Friday, 17 April 2020.
There may be further changes beyond these dates as this pandemic progresses.
As you would appreciate, planned outage work often involves teams from multiple sites or frontline employees working with ASPs. This work is being suspended to minimise the potential for COVID-19 transmission amongst employees, contractors and the community in line with recommendations for social distancing.
We understand these changes may be difficult to accommodate, but we assure you we have not made his decision lightly. Ultimately, we have a responsibility to keep a safe and reliable power supply on for our customers across regional, rural and remote NSW, especially at a time where different members of the community may need to self-isolate. Regrettably, we have concluded that that these arrangements are necessary to enable us to continue to meet our obligations.
Text messages will be sent out to affected ASPs today informing them of the situation. We will reschedule all outages after consultation with our ASP partners when possible.
Essential Energy is committed to doing everything we can to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The safety of our people and the community is our highest priority, and we believe that the steps we have taken today are necessary in these unprecedented times.
We thank you for your patience and understanding during this time.
What you need to do?
- Talk with your Network Assurance Facilitator (NAF) in your area, relating to outages that have been cancelled.
- Communicate this information to relevant members of your organisation.
Further Information
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
Background
Essential Energy launched the Level 1 ASP Authorisation Agreement on 5 February 2020.
From 1 September 2020, Level 1 ASP companies or entities will be required to enter a Level 1 ASP Authorisation Agreement with Essential Energy to continue to undertake and / or facilitate contestable works on or near our electricity distribution network.
To help you to understand more about the agreement we have created a short video with more information.
What do you need to do?
- Watch the video on Level 1 ASP Authorisation Agreement available on Essential Engagement/documents
- Communicate this information to relevant members of your organisation
Further Information
If you need further information, please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
Essential Energy are experiencing an influx of Design and Certification requests, which have resulted in a
backlog.
We are putting plans in place to address the backlog and process your
requests as soon as possible.
In the meantime, there will be a slight delay in processing Design and
Certification requests. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Further Information
If you need further information,
please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
What is happening
Last week one
of Essential Energy’s mailing lists was targeted by a phishing email with a PDF link that was malware. We would like to remind our ASP partners to be vigilant for these emails and
maintain your cyber security.
A
phishing email is a fraudulent attempt to obtain your sensitive information by
a sender disguising themselves as a trustworthy entity.
If you receive a phishing email please take the following actions:
- Delete the email
- Do not open it and do not click on any links
- If you click on a suspicious link, we recommend you change all
your passwords
- Do not forward the email
Further Information
If you need further information,
please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
When you have a bushfire affected customer who needs to be connected to
the Essential Energy Network you will need to fill in a new connection
application in all cases where rebuilding is required.
The connection application should be submitted with the NMI attached to
the site prior to the fires – regardless of the current status of the NMI – if
the customer can’t locate their bill they can contact Essential Energy’s
contact centre on 13 23 91 or their retailer will be able to help.
If the NMI has been made Extinct, then Essential Energy will contact the
ASP or customer to advise they will need to establish an account with a
Retailer and a new NMI will be required.
What do you need to
do?
Communicate this
information to relevant members of your organisation.
Further Information
If you need further information,
please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
What is happening?
Essential Energy will be launching our Level 1 ASP Authorisation
Agreement on 5 February 2020.
From 1 September 2020, Level 1 ASP companies or entities will be
required to enter a Level 1 ASP Authorisation Agreement with Essential Energy
to continue to undertake and / or facilitate contestable works on or near our
electricity distribution network.
The Contract and a Fact Sheet are available on the Document Library, to
help you understand the purpose of the Agreement and how to apply.
What do you need to
do?
- Review the fact sheet and agreement available on the Document Library
- Communicate this
information to relevant members of your organisation
Further Information
We will be providing a video in the
coming weeks with further information on our Authorisation Agreement and
sending you an invitation with more information and to start the authorisation
process.
If you need further information or
would like to ask a question, please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.
What is Happening?
Essential Energy’s network was
significantly damaged during the devastating fires across the south cost of NSW.
To ensure the community’s safety and to allow our resources to concentrate on
our recovery efforts from the bushfire damage, Essential Energy is further
cancelling planned outages for two more weeks (9 February to 23 February 2020)
at the following depots:
- Bega
- Bombala
- Cooma
- Jindabyne
- Moruya
Essential Energy will be contacting
the impacted ASPs that have been identified as having an outage being
cancelled. Other areas should proceed as planned, however impacts from
resources travelling to support the response may affect individual ASP outages.
There may be further impacts beyond
the 23 February as we move through the recovery effort. As you can appreciate
it’s not possible for us to forecast what these impacts will be, but we’re
committed to ensuring we communicate as soon as we possibly can. Essential
Energy has employees embedded in the Emergency Operational Centres, working
closely with the Rural Fire Service and other agencies.
Essential Energy will reschedule
cancelled outages after consultation with our ASP partners once the current emergency
situation has been managed.
What do you need to
do?
- Please
contact your local Network Assurance Facilitator or Essential Energy contact
before doing work on or near our network. Where network supply is not available
to conduct testing these premises are to be left disconnected and secured with
a danger tag. Contact your local Essential Energy representative to co-ordinate
connection when the network supply is restored.
- Remember
our network is in an abnormal state and ensure that you put your safety first.
Be on the lookout for temporary generation connections that may be
back-energising installations.
-
All ASPs
are only allowed to undertake work on or near the network that they are accredited
and authorised to perform (eg only overhead authorised ASPs are to perform overhead service
works).
- Please
communicate this information to relevant members of your organisation and we
thank you for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.
- Review the above etc
- Communicate this
information to relevant members of your organisation.
- View this
communication via Essential Engagement at Essential Engagement/ASP
Further Information
If you need further information,
please email aspinfo@essentialenergy.com.au
Briefing – CEOM7098 issue 16 - Underground Design manual changes (382 KB) (pdf)
Policy/Documents
