The new Government in Canberra has dramatically increased the policy work being undertaken by the Secretariat with its active program of consultation and policy development.

After spending a year establishing the policy adviser role and working with APIA’s Regulatory and Economic Policy Committee and the Environment Committee, Danielle Kellahan decided to resign for personal reasons and is moving to Tasmania. There was a high level of interest in the position with a strong field of applicants and APIA is pleased to announce that Steve Davies, who has been working with the Department of Resources and Tourism, has agreed to leave the bureaucracy and work with APIA and the members to maintain the determination to take the members’ case to government.

Steve comes to APIA from the Department’s Resources Division. He has a Bachelor of Petroleum Engineering and has previously worked in the private sector, including in another industry association (the Australasian Railway Association). He has significant experience in policy development and is also undertaking a Master of Public Policy at the Crawford School of Government and Economics at the Australia National University.

Although the consultation and work with the government on the policy development for the new National Gas Law is completed (the new law came into effect on 1 July 2008), regulatory policy work continues. The Bulletin Board – a system designed to facilitate trade – was introduced at the same time as the new law, and the government is pressing ahead with the development of a Short Term Trading Market (STTM).

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Steve will provide back-up to Ashley Kellett and Steve Livens, who are part of the Gas Market Leaders Group, as well as to Jeff Cooke and Steve Livens on the STTM working group. Although in theory these systems are supposed to facilitate trade, they could also introduce unwarranted and unnecessary costs into gas transmission businesses. This is something APIA will be closely monitoring.

Steve will also work with the Environment Committee on a range of policy measures dealing with climate change. APIA is developing a detailed submission on the Government’s Green Paper on an emissions trading scheme (now called the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme) and has been invited to participate in the Governments National Clean Coal Council on the storage taskforce. While the technical challenges of transporting CO2 are not as complex as capture and storage, the Government now recognises that transportation is a critical element of the process and is keen to work with APIA to ensure all transportation issues are addressed.

Steve has an interest in the industry and brings enthusiasm to the role and the Secretariat is sure the APIA committee members will enjoy working with him.