Reviewing the Gas Distribution System Code of Practice

Remaking the Gas Distribution System Code of Practice

The Parliament of Victoria has reformed the enforcement framework that the commission operates under. As a result, our existing energy codes have transitioned to ‘codes of practice’. This means they are now subordinate legislative instruments and no longer applied only as a condition of licences or exemptions.

The purpose of this review is to remake the Gas Distribution System Code of Practice to:

• make obligations fit for purpose, allowing effective compliance monitoring and enforcement
• align the code with the national regulatory framework and remove duplication and inconsistencies, and
• support policy developments and the Victorian Government’s Gas Substitution Roadmap.

The Gas Distribution System Code of Practice

The Gas Distribution System Code of Practice sets out consumer protections and obligations gas distributors must follow in operating distribution systems in Victoria. It regulates:

• the operation of the distribution system
• connections and augmentation
• curtailment, disconnection and reconnection
• metering requirements
• life support equipment
• deemed distribution contract requirements
• customer complaint handling.

The issues paper highlights the key areas of the code we intend to review. We seek feedback from stakeholders to inform the new code.

Gas distribution in Victoria

Gas distribution companies own and manage the pipelines which deliver gas to homes and businesses. Each distributor handles a separate geographic region of Victoria. The currently licenced gas distributors in Victoria are AusNet Services, Multinet, Australian Gas Networks, and Gas Networks Victoria.

Gas distributors are responsible for:

• managing the reliability of gas supply and the frequency and duration of gas outages
• maintaining the safety of gas distribution pipelines
• metering services
• connections and disconnections of users.

These responsibilities are regulated under the Gas Distribution System Code of Practice and gas licences.

Gas distributors are not responsible for producing the gas, selling gas to end users, or maintaining the gas transmission network. Gas distributors are separate from retailers, who are responsible for billing customers and who act as intermediaries for communication between customers and distributors.

Have your say

If you are a gas distribution network service provider, gas user group, gas consumer or end-user, estate developer, local government council, or energy regulator, we want to hear from you.

Submissions should be made via Engage Victoria by 4 May 2023. You will have the option to respond to an online survey or to upload written submissions responding to the questions laid out in the issues paper.

You can also engage with us at any time by sending an email to energyreform@esc.vic.gov.au