Explore this Work Programme:
Overview
The Gas Act provides for a levy on industry participants to fund the activities of Gas Industry Co (as industry body) pursuant to that Act.
The Gas Levy of Industry Participants (Levy) is our main source of funding. The other source of funding is market fees.
For more information, see Funding.
Setting the levy
The levy is authorised by way of regulations, which we recommend to the Minister each year.
Information on the levy setting principles and process are outlined in the Background section.
Current levy
The Gas (Levy of Industry Participants) Regulations 2025, for the period 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026, is now in force.
Further information can be found under Current Arrangements.
FY2027 Work Programme and Levy
The proposed FY2027 Work Programme and associated Levy industry participants will pay consultation closed on 5.00pm, Monday 9 February 2026. We are now reviewing the submissions received.
Please review the Consultation Paper and other documents on the Developing page.
Previous Levies
Information on previous levies including the regulations, consultation, submissions, and recommendation to the Minister can be found in the Previous levies section.
Current Arrangements
Levy Regulations
The Gas (Levy of Industry Participants) Regulations 2025 came into force on 1 July 2025.
Gas (Levy of Industry Participants) Regulations 2025
The 2025 levy regulations, our recommendation to the Minister for Energy, our analysis of submissions, the submissions we received, and the levy consultation documents are available below.
Statement of Intent
We publish a Statement of Intent (SOI) each year as required under the Gas Act 1992 (sections 43ZQ-43ZV).
The SOI covers the next three financial years, Information includes the nature and scope of operations and work programme objectives, and their alignment with the Gas Policy Statement (GPS) outcomes, and financial and non-financial measures.
Related documents
Submissions
Developing
FY2027 Work Programme and Levy Recommendation
Our co-regulatory model relies on the input of industry to develop our Work Programme.
Each year, in consultation with the industry, we develop out annual Statement of Intent, which includes an annual Work Programme for the coming year, an indication of further activity in the following years, and associated funding requirements.
The process includes us holding a co-regulatory forum to consult with stakeholders on matters related to the Work Programme and Levy, a consultation process, and a recommendation to the Minister on levy regulations for the year ahead.
Consultation on Gas Industry Co FY2027 Work Programme and Levy - now closed
Consultation on the proposed FY2027 Work Programme and associated Levy industry participants will pay is now closed and you can view the submissions below.
Co-regulatory Forum – Thursday 27 November
Our annual co-regulatory forum was held online on Thursday 27 November, to discuss the FY2027 Work Programme and associated Levy, which will
inform our Statement of Intent for 2027-2029.
The feedback we received at the forum now informs the detailed proposals released for
industry consultation in mid-December, providing an opportunity for written submissions.
You can view the Registration Pack and Slides used at the co-regulatory forum below.
Related documents
Submissions
Wholesale Levy Assurance Options Paper - September 2016
Gas Industry Co issued its Analysis of Submissions on the September 2016 Options Paper - Wholesale Levy Assurance. Seven submissions were received.
The Options Paper described issues that had been identified in respect of inaccurate payment of the wholesale levy, and sought industry views on a range of options for providing a high level of assurance that wholesale levy payers were each paying their fair share of the wholesale levy.
The Options Paper, the Analysis of Submissions, and the submissions received are available in Related Documents below.
BACKGROUND
Gas Industry Co is funded by wholesale and retail levies. The wholesale levy is a charge per GJ of gas purchased from a gas producer, and the retail levy is a charge per ICP (customer connection).
The data for wholesale levies is provided by the parties who purchase gas from producers, while the data for retail levies is taken from the gas registry which records the responsible retailer for each active ICP.
In general, the system for collection of the wholesale levy has worked well. Annual consultation on the work programme and the level of funding has received strong support from stakeholders, as evidenced by their submissions. However, Gas Industry Co is aware of a number of instances where industry participants have made voluntary payments following identification of errors in past returns. Although this suggests that, on the whole, industry participants’ processes were subject to a degree of rigour, Gas Industry Co considers that reliance on industry participants’ internal processes is an inadequate check on wholesale levy payments. The lack of any transparency about gas sales by producers means that it is not possible to verify the accuracy of the returns and associated wholesale levy payments.
Given that there is inadequate means for Gas Industry Co to verify that each participant has met its obligations under the Levy Regulations, the potential for undetected underpayment is unfair to other industry participants who are required to bear the cost.
Gas Industry Co identified a series of options that could be used to mitigate the risks associated with inaccurate levy returns and payments. These options range from introducing regular audits of levy payers through to using data that is sourced independently from levy payers as the basis of the levy invoices. The latter reflects the change that was made to the method of invoicing for retail levies in FY2010 when we began using data from the gas registry to identify each retailer’s ICP market share.
Related documents
Submissions
Background
This section provides information on the levy setting process and principles.
Gas Industry Co was established in 2004 to perform the role of the ‘industry body’ as set out in Part 4A of the Gas Act 1992 (Act). In consultation with the industry, it develops an annual Statement of Intent, which includes an annual Work Programme, an indication of further activity in the following years, and associated funding requirements.
About the levy
The Gas Act provides for a levy on industry participants to fund the activities of Gas Industry Co (as industry body) pursuant to that Act. Gas Industry Co as industry body incurs the costs of:
- making recommendations concerning any gas governance arrangements, including for regulations and rules under the Act;
- establishing, operating and facilitating the operation of markets for industry participants;
- providing advice to the Minister on matters concerning the gas industry;
- governance of the industry body;
- collecting the levy; and carrying out other functions of duties, or exercising any powers, under the Act.
The objectives of the Levy arrangements workstream is to deliver a levy recommendation to the Minister of Energy, sufficient to fund our planned activities in the relevant financial year and ensure that the balance of Industry Advances Reserve account is within acceptable limits.
The levy is reset annually. The process includes us consulting with stakeholders on matters related to the levy and making a recommendation to the Minister on levy regulations for the year ahead.
The Statement of Levy Principles
The Statement of Levy Principles describes the legislative authority, levy principles and levy structure we use when developing our levy recommendation for funding each year, under the levy provisions of the Gas Act 1992.
The statement assumes all the topics covered within it have been settled and are agreed to. It is available below.
Guideline for industry participants regarding payment of the levy and market fees
The guideline below provides industry participants with information on how the levy on market fees is determined, and when the levy and market fees must be paid.
Wholesale Levy Assurance Options Paper - September 2016
Gas Industry Co issued its Analysis of Submissions on the September 2016 Options Paper - Wholesale Levy Assurance. Seven submissions were received.
Gas Industry Co identified a series of options that could be used to mitigate the risks associated with inaccurate levy returns and payments. These options range from introducing regular audits of levy payers through to using data that is sourced independently from levy payers as the basis of the levy invoices. The latter reflects the change that was made to the method of invoicing for retail levies in FY2010 when we began using data from the gas registry to identify each retailer’s ICP market share.
Learn more information about the Wholesale Levy Assurance Options Paper - September 2016
Levy refunds
Our policy is that, subject to the Gas Industry Company maintaining adequate capital reserves, the balance of the Industry Advances Reserves (IAR), comprising any over-collected levies and budget underspend, be repaid to the industry as soon as practicable after the annual accounts have been received by shareholders at our Annual Meeting.
There have been no refunds since 2020.
Refunds made from the Industry Advances Reserves account between 2010 and 2019 can be found below. Refer to our annual reports for more information.
Related documents
Previous levies
Each year when the new Gas (Levy of Industry Participants) Regulations come into force on 1 July the previous year's regulations are revoked.
Previous levies