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On 16 December 2025, the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) issued its Market Monitoring Information Order – Electricity (MMIO). The MMIO creates new compulsory reporting obligations for Retailers, Market Generators and Integrated Resource Providers in the National Electricity Market (Class Members) to report on their electricity trading and offtake contracts.
The MMIO requires Class Members to report historical information on a once-off basis, as well as requiring quarterly and annual reporting from Class Members on an ongoing basis. The MMIO is available on the AER's website.
The first reporting date is 31 March 2026, so clients should consider whether the MMIO applies to them, what information is required to be submitted and what steps must be taken to prepare for compliance. Compliance with the MMIO is mandatory, with potential enforcement action or civil penalties imposed by the AER for non-compliance under the National Energy Law (NEL).
Required action by 31 March 2026
Once-off reporting
Class Members are required to submit specific contractual information relating to Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) entered into between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2025. This information must be submitted to the AER by 31 March 2026.
The specific information to be provided includes:
- the name of the generation asset;
- whether the PPA was purchased or sold by the class member;
- the total volume in MWh that the Class Member purchased or sold via the PPA;
- the average price in $/MWh purchased or sold via the PPA;
- the ABN or legal entity identifier of the counterparty.
Annual reporting for 2025
If Class Members entered into electricity derivative contracts or master agreements traded either on the ASX (Exchange Contracts) or in over-the-counter markets (OTC Contracts) in 2025, they are also required to answer qualitative questions about their trading activities and related trading companies by 31 March 2026.
Ongoing obligations
Quarterly reporting
From Q1 2026 to Q4 2030 (inclusive), each Class Member must provide information relating to their Exchange Contracts and OTC Contracts on a quarterly basis. The information to be provided includes:
- details of each Exchange Contract with a total volume greater than or equal to 1MW entered by the Class Member on the ASX;
- details of each OTC Contract dealing with Base Future, Cap, Morning Peak Future, Evening Peak Future, Average Rate Option and Base Strip Option (each as defined in the MMIO), with a total volume greater than or equal to 1MW;
- party details;
- pricing information;
- trade volumes.
This information must be submitted to the AER by the dates specified below:
| Reporting Period | Applicable dates | Submission date |
| Q1 | 1 January to 31 March | 15 May |
| Q2 | 1 April to 30 June | 15 August |
| Q3 | 1 July to 30 September | 15 November |
| Q4 | 1 October to 31 December | 1 February |
Annual reporting
For each year between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2030, each Class Member will need to answer the qualitative questions set out in the MMIO by 1 February the following year.
Form of reporting
All information must be submitted via the AER Portal. The MMIO outlines specific requirements for submission, including when the Submission Template must be used.
- Where multiple legal entities in a corporate group are Class Members, a consolidated response can be submitted by one Class Member on behalf of the other members of the corporate group. The submitting Class Member must inform the AER that it wishes to provide a consolidated report no later than 1 month prior to the first submission date on which it intends to provide a consolidated response.
- An Authorised Officer of a Class Member is also required to attest to the completeness and quality of the information provided to the AER using the pro forma templates provided in the MMIO.
Class Members should be aware that information required to be submitted to the AER may be sensitive or confidential. Any information provided to the AER will be treated as confidential.
Recommended actions for businesses
Class Members should prepare for compliance with the MMIO before 31 March 2026. Failure to do so can result in civil penalties under the NEL.
Class Members who will have to submit information to the AER should undertake a review of any relevant PPAs, Exchange Contracts and OTC Contracts to ensure compliance with any notification obligations under the confidentiality regimes within these contracts.
If different corporate entities wish to provide a consolidated response, the submitting Class Member should inform the AER that it wishes to do so as soon as possible.
Class Members should also begin locating and preparing information for submission, including by complying with the form and manner of submission required by the MMIO. Companies may also want to consider implementing document and file management procedures to ensure that information is stored in accordance with the MMIO requirements.
Class Members who do not have any information to provide for a relevant reporting period must notify the AER via the AER Portal.
Class Members should also consider potential responses to qualitative questions, such as the percentage of Exchange Contracts which were cleared by a financial institution for trading on the ASX, or which factors may have limited the Class Member's ability to negotiate and enter into any OTC Contracts.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
