Review of Power and Water Corporation’s Compliance with the 2014 Network Price Determination

​In February 2016, the Commission was made aware through discussions with Jacana Energy of a possible breach by Power and Water Corporation (PWC) of the 2014 Network Price Determination (NPD) in relation to standard network connections. PWC wrote to the Commission in March 2016 and advised that it had “breached the parameters of the 2014 NPD”.

The 2014 NPD is the Commission’s final determination made under clause 66 of the Network Access Code in relation to the maximum allowed revenue that PWC can recover from the provision of regulated network access services during the 2014-19 regulatory control period.

The NPD breach added to existing concerns of the Commission in relation to PWC’s compliance framework. As a result of the Commission’s concerns, the Commission appointed an external auditor in accordance with clause 11.4 of PWC’s network licence to review PWC’s compliance with its network licence and the breach of the 2014 NPD.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Australia was engaged for the purposes of assessing, in combination with other information obtained by the Commission, the current compliance processes at PWC. The Commission’s report provides the Commission’s conclusions in relation to PWC’s compliance with the 2014 NPD and PWC’s identification and reporting of compliance breaches.

Based on the findings from the PwC Australia report and previous audits undertaken by the Commission, the Commission considers that PWC has breached clause 11.1 of its networks licence. The Commission considers that PWC has also breached the Compliance Framework and Reporting Guidelines. The Commission considers the breach needs to be addressed by PWC as a priority.

The Commission will continue to monitor PWC’s compliance through regular audit and review and will continue to work with PWC to ensure that it complies with its regulatory obligations. The Commission will consider exercising its enforcement powers if the actions and behaviour of PWC towards regulatory compliance are not addressed within a reasonable period.

Review of PWC Compliance with 2014 NPD

Appendix A – PWC Specified Procedures Undertaken

Any questions regarding this report should be directed to the Utilities Commission:

Email: utilities.commission@nt.gov.au

Telephone: +61 8 8999 5480

Mail: Utilities Commission
GPO Box 915
DARWIN NT 0801