The National Electricity Law sets out the key responsibilities of the Panel namely:
- monitoring, reviewing and reporting on the safety, security and reliability of the national electricity system
- providing advice in relation to the safety, security and reliability of the national electricity system, at the request of the AEMC.
The National Electricity Rules (NER) confers detailed functions & powers on the Panel across decision-making, advisory and monitoring and reporting tasks. It exercises these by conducting market reviews, publishing guidelines for market operation and determining power system standards based on advice from AEMO.
Reviews
The Panel conducts reviews:
Reliability and Security Report (RASR)
The RASR examines the performance of the National Electricity Market (NEM) in terms of reliability and security of the power system. This report was previously named the Annual Market Performance Review (AMPR).
The Panel has been conducting this review since 2006. The review considers the reliability performance of the NEM’s generation and bulk transmission (i.e. interconnection), and the performance of the power system against the relevant technical standards.
Access the latest version of the RASR.
Reliability Standard and Settings Review
Every four years the Panel is required to review the reliability standard and the reliability settings (RSSR). This periodic review enables the Panel to consider whether the standards and settings remain suitable for current market arrangements and to ensure they continue to meet the requirements of the market, market participants and consumers.
The Panel commenced the 2026 RSSR in June 2025. This review considers the standard and settings to apply in the NEM from 1 July 2028 to 30 June 2032.
The Panel recently published its draft findings for the 2026 RSSR.
Review of the form of the reliability standard and APC
During the 2022 RSSR, the Panel also found that the nature and characteristics of reliability risks may be changing towards the end of 2028 (i.e. the 2022 RSSR period). The Panel, therefore, recommended that a further review be carried out with a more detailed analysis to consider whether the form of the standard was still fit for purpose for consumers and the power system while the system is in transition and beyond.
The Panel commenced a follow-up review of the form of the reliability standard and administered price cap (Form Review) in March 2023. The Panel completed this review in June 2024 and determined that the form of the reliability standard and administered price cap remains fit for purpose.
Template for Generator Compliance Review
The template for generator compliance programs (template) seeks to assist Registered Participants to create and maintain compliance programs to provide reasonable assurance of ongoing compliance with their plant’s technical performance standards. All Registered Participants are required to institute and maintain a compliance program that is consistent with the template.
The template must be reviewed every five years and at such other times as the AEMC may request. The template was most recently reviewed in 2019, following the Generator technical performance standards rule made in October 2018. This rule proposed a number of changes to the technical performance standards for generators seeking to connect to the national electricity grid, and the process for negotiating those standards.
On 28 November 2024, the AEMC published a final determination and final rule to commence the next review of the template for generator compliance programs (template) by 19 December 2025.
The Panel recently commenced its review of the template for generator compliance programs on 11 December 2025.
Review of System Standards
The Panel is required to monitor, review and publish a report on the system standards in terms of whether they appropriately and adequately describe the expected technical performance conditions of the power system.
The system standards are set out in Schedule 5.1a of the NER and includes the frequency operating standards.
Guidelines
The Panel also produces a number of guidelines to assist AEMO to perform its power system security and reliability functions:
Reliability and Emergency Reserve Trader (RERT) guidelines
The RERT is a mechanism in the National Electricity Rules that allows AEMO to contract for reserves ahead of a period where AEMO projects there to be a reserve shortfall. A projected reserve shortfall is where the amount of generation, interconnector and demand response capacity is projected to be below the level consistent with the reliability standard.
The Panel is required to develop and publish guidelines that provide guidance for AEMO in its procurement and operation of the RERT.
The latest version of the guidelines were made in August 2020 to reflect the implementation of a temporary out of market capacity reserve, called the Interim Reliability Reserve. These rules were recommended and approved by Energy Ministers in August 2020.
Principles and Guidelines for Maintaining Power System Security
The Panel is required to develop and publish principles and guidelines that determine how AEMO should maintain power system security. These principles must take into account the costs and benefits to the extent practicable.
To date, the Panel has not determined a need for any principles or guidelines for maintaining power system security.
Guidelines for Intervention by AEMO for the Provision of Reserves
The Panel is required to determine guidelines governing AEMO’s exercise of power to issue directions in connection with maintaining or re-establishing the power system in a reliable operating state.
If there is a major supply shortfall in the NEM, AEMO must implement any necessary involuntary load shedding in an equitable manner, and in accordance with the guidelines established by the Panel as part of the power system security and reliability standards.
In December 2009, the Panel published guidelines for the management of electricity supply shortfall events.
Reviewable Operating Incident Guidelines
The Panel is required to determine guidelines for identifying reviewable operating incidents which AEMO uses as a basis for determining whether to review a power system incident.
The latest of these guidelines were set in September 2022.
Guidelines for AEMO’s General power system risk reviews
In June 2021 the AEMC made a final rule to implement a holistic General Power System Risk Review (GPSRR) which replaced the Power System Frequency Risk Review (PSFRR). If the Panel considers it necessary or desirable, it may determine guidelines for general power system risk reviews conducted by AEMO.
To date the Panel has not determined any guidelines for general power system risk reviews.
Standards
The Panel also publishes standards governing how the power system operates in certain circumstances.
System Restart Standard
When determining the level of restart services to be procured, the Panel is required to consider how best to minimise the impacts of a major blackout for consumers, taking the national electricity objective into account.
The Panel recently completed its review of the system restart standard in December 2025. The revised Standard provided greater flexibility for AEMO to support its procurement of System restart ancillary services (SRAS) to meet the needs of the changing power system. The Panel also make recommendations to strengthen the existing system restart regulatory framework and actions by AEMO to improve system restart preparedness, including a proposal for changes to the Rules that would seek to clarify requirements for forward-looking restoration planning and strengthen frameworks to validate this plan.
Performance standards
The Panel is required to publish a report on the implementation of automatic access standards and minimum access standards as performance standards.
In April 2009 the Panel completed a Technical Standards Review which included reviewing:
- the automatic access standards and minimum access standards;
- individual technical standards; and
- the interaction between the system, access and plant-specific standards as a whole.
The Commission completed the Generator technical performance standards rule change in October 2018, which proposed a number of changes to the technical performance standards for generators seeking to connect to the national electricity grid, and the process for negotiating those standards.
AEMO must conduct a review of some or all of the technical requirements in Schedules 5.2, 5.3 and 5.3a of the National Electricity Rules every five years, under clause 5.2.6A(a) of the NER. Given the relevance to the Panel’s work program, the Panel works closely with AEMO on this program of work.
Power system security standards
The Panel is required to review and determine standards that govern the security of the power system.
The only Power system security standards that are active under the National Electricity Rules are the Frequency operating standard for the Mainland and Tasmania.
In April 2022 the Panel commenced the most recent Review of the frequency operating standard for Tasmania and the mainland. The Panel completed this review in April 2023.
Plant standards
A Registered Participant, AEMO or interested party may request the Panel to determine whether an existing Australian or international standard may be adopted as a plant standard for a particular class of plant. To date, no party has requested the Panel to determine this.
Other responsibilities
Determination of protected events
A protected event is a low likelihood, high consequence non-credible contingency event for which AEMO must maintain the power system security standards, including the frequency operating standards, following the occurrence of the event.
The Panel is responsible for determining any protected events following the request for such a determination by AEMO.
The Panel assessed a request from AEMO to declare the risk from South Australia's power system from destructive winds as a protected event. This was the first request for the declaration of a protected event which had been received by the Panel.
In 2023, the Panel determined to revoke the South Australian destructive winds protected event following a request from the AEMO.
Reliability Panel comments on AEMO’s Transition Plan for System Security
Under clause 5.20.8 of the NER, AEMO is required to publish an annual transition plan for system security (TPSS). The first TPSS was published on 2 December 2024.
The Panel may provide written commentary to AEMO within six months of the TPSS’s publication. The Rules provide that the next iteration of the TPSS must publish and respond to the Panel’s comments.
The Panel’s response to the 2024 TPSS has been published here.