On 27 August 2026, the AEMC published a consultation paper for a rule change request seeking to amend the National Electricity Rules (NER) to expressly enable dispatch instructions to include a limit on the number of inverters online at a connection point. The request was submitted by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO).  

The rule change request seeks to formalise AEMO’s inverter dispatch initiative which is implementing a mechanism to automate AEMO's communication of inverter-limits (limits on the number of inverters connected online to the power system).

To formalise inverter-limits AEMO has proposed a number of amendments to the NER, including:

• to explicitly recognise limits on the number of online inverters as a valid form of dispatch instruction
• to require newly connecting facilities to possess the capability to monitor the number of online inverters, receive inverter-limit instructions communicated by AEMO and respond to those instructions through local control systems
• introducing definitions of “inverter” and “online inverter” to support consistent interpretation and application of the framework
• transitional arrangements, if the rule is made, to include immediate commencement of the associated definitions and the new connection requirements for future connecting participants, together with an 18‑month implementation period before the new dispatch instruction provisions apply to existing facilities.  

We are interested in stakeholder views on the issues raised in the rule change request and the proposed solution.  

Next steps

Submissions to the consultation paper close 24 September 2026. We will publish a draft determination for the rule change on 3 December 2026.