About the project
Energy system planning is fundamental in building consumer trust on the net-zero journey, regaining consumer confidence in the sector, and in delivering a least-cost, least-risk transition, and it’s a key policy priority for Energy Consumers Australia in the next 12 months. It can help determine which infrastructure to build as well as the impacts of various policy decisions on the future energy system.
Consumers are uncertain and worried about how the energy transition will impact them. Our Energy Consumer Sentiment Survey (ECSS – June 2023) found that 60% of Australians worry that electricity will become more expensive, and a third of Australians are concerned that electricity supply will become less reliable as a result of the energy transition. When planning falls short of best practice, consumers end up overpaying for the energy transition and facing avoidable hurdles.
The Commonwealth is reviewing current energy system planning processes in Australia, and we want to bring new perspectives and enrich discussions about what energy system planning can be and achieve. We brought global experts together with Australian policymakers, practitioners and industry to present insights and discuss best practices in 21st Century Energy System Planning over a series of four webinars during September and October 2023. We believe these conversations can help shape how we envision, prepare for and achieve the bright energy future we all want. Through this series of webinars, we aimed to raise the ambition of these reforms and encourage comprehensive knowledge gathering by all stakeholders.
Webinar One: Planning with Purpose
Overview
Why do we plan the energy system? The National Electricity Rules state that the ISP’s purpose is “to establish a whole of system plan for the efficient development of the power system,” but in practice its primary aim is to identify transmission projects that need to be built in the next ten years.
What parts of the energy system should we plan and which ones should be left to the market to sort out? Even today, planning is the primary tool for determining which network to build – the ISP covers the large-scale transmission network. At least three different distribution network processes – networks resets (or revenue determinations) that happen every five years, the Distribution Annual Planning Review (or the DAPR), and the Regulatory Investment Test – are all versions of planning for the distribution system. And those networks – the poles and wires in the transmission and distribution system – account for nearly 50% of the residential electricity bill today and likely more in the future. Planning overseas often also plays a more dedicated role in identifying just which generators to build or how much energy efficiency and consumer energy resources individual utilities should go out and acquire.
Planning is an opportunity to step back and clearly articulate the goals of the energy system. Do we want to use planning mostly to come up with a common set of assumptions to test different ideas, or do we want to use planning to make decisions? And if we use it to make decisions, which decisions is planning well-suited to? In this webinar, we explore the purposes of long-term energy system planning and emerging methodologies for planning the grid.
Panellists
- Facilitator: Brian Spak, Director at Energy Consumers Australia
- Eli Pack, Group Manager System Planning at Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO)
- Nicholas Horan, Manager, ISP Review Section – National Energy Transformation Division, DCCEEW
- Prof Pierluigi Mancarella, University of Melbourne
- Lauren Shwisberg, Rocky Mountain Institute
Session details
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:03:08 Why is ECA hosting a series of webinars on energy planning?
- 00:14:24 Reimagining Resource Planning with Lauren
- 00:35:50 Risk-aware flexible whole-system planning with Pierluigi
- 00:58:02 Panel discussion and Q&A
- 01:27:29 Close
Webinar Two: Demand-side solutions for a least-cost transition: efficiency, flexibility, and electrification
Overview
The 2022 Integrated System Plan (ISP) assumes a “rapid consumer-led transformation of the energy sector”, with a major shift towards electrification and a dramatic increase in the use and orchestration of Consumer Energy Resources (CER). In the ISP, however, all consumer energy-related investment or daily behaviour changes are treated as assumptions. The ISP has no specific milestones or plans to ensure the demand-side future it envisions comes to fruition. The National Energy Performance Strategy (NEPS) Consultation Paper acknowledges that “we need to strengthen the role of demand-side considerations in energy system planning”. There are decades of experience using demand-side potential studies in the U.S. to carefully examine the technical and cost-effective potential of various energy-saving measures at the demand side. This webinar will focus on proactive demand-side planning and how to use effective policy to ensure that the benefits identified are realised.
Panellists
- Facilitator: Brian Spak, Director at Energy Consumers Australia
- Josh Keeling,SVP of Market Development, UtilityAPI
- Andrew Turley, Group Manager Forecasting at Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO)
- Kirsty Rolls, A/g Manager, ISP Review Section – National Energy Transformation Division
Session details
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:04:27 What does proactive demand-side planning look like?
- 00:19:33 Demand-side integration in the United States with Josh
- 00:48:17 Panel discussion and Q&A
- 01:28:30 Close
Webinar Three: Integrating transmission and distribution planning
Overview
Australian households and businesses lead the world in adopting rooftop solar, but networks overseas are more transparent and intentional in their planning of the future of the distribution system. In this webinar, we’ll hear from Pacific Energy Institute on emerging best practices in distribution planning, including the role of Consumer Energy Resources (CER), and how best to plan across the transmission and distribution interface. We’ll also discuss the Centre for New Energy Technologies’ Enhanced System Planning project, focused on new ways to plan the distribution system in Victoria.
Panellists
- Facilitator: Brian Spak, Director at Energy Consumers Australia
- Andrew Turley, Group Manager Forecasting at Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO)
- Kirsty Rolls, A/g Manager, ISP Review Section – National Energy Transformation Division
- Paul De Martini, Pacific Energy Institute
- John Theunissen, C4NET
Session details
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:04:25 How might we better plan the distribution system?
- 00:16:52 Integrating transmission and distribution planning in the US with Paul
- 00:40:10 The ESP Project: foundations to inform sub-transmission level electricity system planning with John
- 00:59:24 Panel discussion and Q&A
- 01:27:31 Close
Webinar Four: The future of gas network planning
Overview
The future of Australia’s energy system is increasingly dependent upon electrification and the future of the gas network. Large-scale industrial consumers – and electricity generation – are likely to remain dependent on gas infrastructure for the foreseeable future. Many households and small businesses can already achieve cost savings from disconnecting from the gas network, but the gas network must continue safely and reliably operating until the last remaining consumers using it can switch to electricity. This webinar focuses on policy and regulatory options to manage the gas grid in the UK as outlined by the Regulatory Assistance Project; examples from California’s work to “thoughtfully, empirically, and pragmatically consider and decide the future of its gas resources and delivery systems,” which is co-led by Gridworks, and practical recommendations to responsibly plan the future of the gas network in Australia from the Grattan Institute.
Panellists
- Facilitator: Brian Spak, Director at Energy Consumers Australia
- Andrew Turley, Group Manager Forecasting at Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO)
- Kirsty Rolls, A/g Manager, ISP Review Section – National Energy Transformation Division
- Claire Halbrook, Gridworks
- Tony Wood, Grattan Institute
- Richard Lowes, RAP
Session details
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:03:47 How might we best plan the gas network and align gas and electricity plans?
- 00:14:18 Policy and regulatory options to manage the gas grid in the UK with Richard
- 00:36:38 California’s best practices to consider and decide the future of its gas resources and delivery systems with Claire
- 00:51:18 “Getting off gas: why, how, and who should pay?” with Tony
- 01:07:24 Panel discussion and Q&A
- 01:26:38 Close