The Reliability and Emergency Reserve Trader (RERT) is a mechanism put in place when 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.
RERT reserves:
Typical sources are:
- Load curtailment: Large energy users switching off or curtailing demand for electricity. Eg. Aluminium smelters
- Additional generation: Generation capacity that is not available to the market that can be brought online. Eg. Batteries
Recent RERT events:
The RERT was activated on five occasions from 30 December 2019 to 31 January 2020 as a result of the bush fires and summer heatwaves.
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| 30 December 2019 | Victoria |
| 4 January 2020 | NSW |
| 23 January 2020 | NSW |
| 31 January 2020 | NSW |
| 31 January 2020 | Victoria |
When the RERT mechanism is activated, there is a cost involved in administering the process and to also compensate 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, many commercial and industrial electricity users began to receive electricity invoices on 20 February 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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The RERT event occurred on 30/12/2019.
This resulted in AEMO incurring costs that are passed to the retailer and in turn to users. Commercial & Industrial energy users are currently seeing these RERT charges on February invoices.
