FAQs
What is a Regulatory Proposal?
A Regulatory Proposal outlines our five-year investment plans, the costs to deliver those plans and the proposed prices that customers will pay. It is submitted to the Regulator for review every five years.
The time period of our upcoming Regulatory Proposal, on which we are engaging, is the five years from 1 July 2024 through to 30 June 2029.
Our current regulatory period began on 1 July 2019 and will run through to 30 June 2024.
Who is the Regulator?
Our regulator is the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). The AER is responsible for ensuring we comply with the National Electricity Rules set by the Australian Energy Market Commission, part of which is the review and approval of our expenditure, revenue and prices as proposed in our Regulatory Proposal.
What does Essential Energy do?
Essential Energy owns, operates and maintains the ‘poles and wires’ that transport electricity through the districts, suburbs and streets to your home or business. These 'poles and wires' are known as the distribution network and they transport electricity less efficiently and at lower voltages than the transmission network.
How does the distribution network differ from the transmission network?
The transmission network comprises the very large powerlines that traditionally connected relatively few large electricity generators (hydro, gas and coal) to the distribution network. The transmission network efficiently transport large amounts of electricity across long distances at high voltages, whereas the distribution network transports electricity less efficiently and at lower voltages into homes and businesses.