The Reliability and Emergency Reserve Trader (RERT) is a mechanism put in place when the available electricity supply in the market cannot meet forecast demand and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) puts out a call for additional electricity capacity to be made available to the grid. This capacity comes from sources that are not otherwise available to the market.
Where do the RERT reserves come from?
Typical sources are:
- Load curtailment: Large energy users switching off or curtailing demand for electricity. Eg. Aluminium smelters pausing operations during a RERT event
- Additional generation: Generation capacity that is not available to the market that can be brought online. Eg. Batteries
RERT events since 2019 December:
To give an example of when the RERT might be used, the mechanism was activated for about a month from 30 December 2019 until 31 January 2020 as a result of the bushfires and summer heatwave. Since then, there have been other occasions where the RERT was utilised.
Below is a table containing RERT events from December 2019 onwards.
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| 30 December 2019 | Victoria |
| 4 January 2020 | NSW |
| 23 January 2020 | NSW |
| 31 January 2020 | NSW |
| 31 January 2020 | Victoria |
| 17 December 2020 | NSW |
| 25 May 2021 | Queensland |
| 1 February 2022 | Queensland |
| 14 June 2022 | NSW |
| 15 June 2022 | NSW |
| 15 June 2022 | Queensland |
| 17 June 2022 | NSW |
| 5 July 2022 | Queensland |
| 3 February 2023 | Queensland |
When the RERT mechanism is activated, there is a cost involved in administering the process as well as compensating the large energy users and generators who participate in the emergency response. This cost is passed on by AEMO to energy retailers who, in turn, pass it onto you – the customer.
AEMO – RERT charges on invoices
As a result of RERT events, many commercial and industrial electricity users have received electricity invoices with these additional costs factored into their bills.
Need help from an energy expert?
If you are having trouble understanding why you are being charged extra under the said scheme, one of our energy experts can help you understand the process involved in electricity invoices.
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