Overview
This consultation has closed.
Consultation submissions
Public consultation on the proposed regulations supporting the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure (OEI) Act 2021 was open from 12 April to 12 May 2024. A total of 107 submissions were received. Of these, 66 opted for their submission to be public.
View the published submissions.
Who we heard from
Industry developers
State governments
Legal firms
Non-government agencies
Existing users of the marine environment; and
individuals
What we heard
Following consideration of these submissions, we made changes to the regulations to respond to common issues that were raised. These changes included:
reducing administrative burden on licence holders and the Regulator by reducing timeframes for the Regulator to consider applications, clarifying the circumstances where a management plan must be revised, decoupling the return of financial security from the management plan, and clarifying how the information required in a management plan is commensurate with the stage of an OEI project;
improving transparency of processes to include consultation prior to the Regulator making a decision on a protection zone;
strengthening the consultation provisions to clarify those who are to be consulted when preparing a management plan;
improving the sequencing of the licensing scheme, such as not requiring design notification for a transmission and infrastructure licence until after exploratory work is completed; and
improving safety outcomes by further harmonising the regulations with the WHS model laws.
Next step
The Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Amendment Regulations are now in force. Thank you to those who participated in this process.
Consultation documents
Converlens