Status Update and Revised Timetable

In March 2010 Gas Industry Co published a Status Update providing a summary of submissions received on the change request. Gas Industry Co noted that, considering the wide scope of the change request, it may be difficult to approve the whole package unconditionally. We sought feedback from industry participants on the extent to which any recommendation Gas Industry Co made could be conditional, and whether the MPOC was sufficiently clear on that point. We also sought views on whether MDL should subdivide the Change Request into smaller, issue specific, packages.

We noted that Vector Gas Limited believed the Change Request would materially adversely affect its business and challenged the Change Request under the terms of its interconnection agreement with MDL. We sought feedback on whether this should affect Gas Industry Co's processing of the Change Request.

Gas Industry Co's then impending recommendation to the Minister of Energy and Resources that balancing rules should be introduced was also discussed, and views were sought on whether this should affect the processing of the Change Request.

Gas Industry Co noted that it has asked MDL to hold workshops with the industry to allow for more interactive discussion of the Change Request; and would issue a revised timetable for processing the Change Request after it had considered feedback from the industry and any further information MDL provided.

Following feedback on the Status Update, Gas Industry Co revised its original timetable.