PIAC responded to the revised contingent project applications for Project EnergyConnect (PEC) from TransGrid and ElectraNet. Given its low net benefit and escalating costs, PIAC does not believe PEC is an investment in the long-term interests of NSW consumers. PIAC also considers it should not proceed under the current regulatory framework, which allocates all costs and risks to consumers in the region of transmission infrastructure irrespective of whether they will receive a net benefit, and despite other parties, such as connecting generators and communities, benefiting from the investment.
Recovering costs from parties on a beneficiary-pays basis, and ensuring all groups of consumers who are exposed to any costs receive a material net benefit, must be required for large transmission projects, such as PEC, to proceed. PIAC supports urgent regulatory reforms to this end, and delaying approval of PEC if needed.
