ABSTRACT
Australia, with its six states and two territories, has been characterized as having post-war protectionist policies with wage fixation and subsidies that influenced almost all sectors of the highly regulated economy prior to the 1980s. This chapter provides a synopsis of the evolution of the Australian National Energy Market governance structure, including the reform measures undertaken over the years. The integration models of the power market in Australia are explained. The chapter describes the functioning of the National Electricity Market (NEM) of Australia. The evolution of the investment models in the energy sector is then analyzed. A chapter brings out the lessons that the North East Region (NER) can learn from the Australian experience of the process of power market integration. Power generation requires substantial capital investment in power stations over a long period before power can be sold. Different power stations require different lengths of time to become operational.
