ESI enhancement compliance plan notices

The Basslink interconnector transfers energy between Tasmania and mainland Australia. 

Hydro Tasmania and the owner of Basslink (Basslink Pty Ltd (BPL)) were parties to a Basslink Services Agreement (BSA)  which was in place from 28 April 2006 until February 2022.  A 2014 Ministerial Notice issued under s36 of the Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995  (Tas) applied to the BSA, which, among other things, obliged Hydro Tasmania to publish notices when it used certain bidding rights.  Notices issued during the term of the BSA pursuant to relevant ESI Enhancement Compliance Plans are listed below.

From 1 October 2022 until 20 October 2022 Hydro Tasmania and BPL were parties to a short-term network services agreement.  On 20 October 2022 APA acquired BPL.  As part of the sale transaction, Hydro Tasmania and BPL have entered into a Network Services Agreement (NSA) which commenced on 21 October 2022 under which:

• BPL is obliged to make Basslink available to the market at the following levels, at zero price, unless otherwise instructed by Hydro Tasmania:
  • 462 MW for each Trading Interval during the period from 1 August to 31 December (inclusive) of each year; and
  • 447 MW for each Trading Interval during the period from 1 January to 31 July (inclusive) of each year,

  measured at the receiving end.

• Hydro Tasmania may only instruct BPL to bid at a price other than zero in the circumstances set out in an agreed Transport Bidding Protocol, a copy of which is attached to this notice.
• If Hydro Tasmania uses those bidding rights, Hydro Tasmania is obliged to publish a notice on its website advising the reason – it will do so here within two working days.  Given the similarities in the bidding protocol in the NSA and that in the 2014 Ministerial Notice, notices published by Hydro Tasmania pursuant to NSA will be referred to as ‘voluntary ESI enhancement plan’ notices when published below.