Pipelines and Gas Supply Acts' amendments consultation - August 2024

The NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water sought feedback on proposed changes to the Pipelines Act 1967 and Gas Supply Act 1996.

The NSW Pipelines and Gas Supply laws regulate the safe and reliable supply and distribution of gas and the safe construction and operation of pipelines in NSW. The NSW Government has identified areas for improvement to enhance governance, safety, and operational efficiency of the regulatory regime established by Pipelines and Gas Supply Acts.

The consultation paper outlined proposed changes to the Pipelines and Gas Supply Acts, including the: 

• improved governance of end-of-life gas supply and pipeline operations and infrastructure management.
• expansion of government inspector powers to investigate incidents.
• update of penalties to ensure they remain appropriately dissuasive, including accumulating penalties for ongoing non-compliance for certain offences.
• introduction of penalty infringement and show cause notices to align with comparable energy legislation.
• increases to local court penalty limits.
• additional refinements to streamline the NSW pipeline and gas supply regulatory framework, ensuring alignment with industry standards, clarity in responsibilities and enhanced operational effectiveness.

Industry briefing

An industry briefing on the Consultation Paper was held on Tuesday 3 September 2024. Presentation material is available in the Documents.

Next steps

The following are the key milestones for the finalisation of the legislation changes.