Transitional Electricity Cost Assistance Program
As part of the CPRS package introduced to parliament in February 2010, the Government committed to developing a Transitional Electricity Cost Assistance Program (TECAP) to help smooth the impact on manufacturing and mining businesses of CPRS-related increases in electricity prices.
How does the Transitional Electricity Cost Assistance Program work?
The Government announced that the TECAP would apply after the fixed-price transitional year of the CPRS (originally scheduled to be 2011-12) and be capped at $1.1 billion, distributed over two years as follows:
- up to 50 per cent of the projected increase in CPRS-related retail electricity prices in the 2012-13 year; and
- the size of the second year payout would depend on available funds, but was to be capped at 25 per cent of the projected increase in CPRS-related retail electricity prices in the 2013-14 year, with the rate to be determined based on actual data on the take-up of the program for that year and remaining funds).
Who does the Transitional Electricity Cost Assistance Program assist?
As part of the CPRS package introduced to parliament in February 2010, the Government set out that assistance would be provided to manufacturing and mining corporations with facilities that use more than 300 megawatt hours of electricity per year.
Assistance would not be provided in respect of facilities eligible for assistance under the Emissions-Intensive Trade-Exposed Assistance Program, the Electricity Sector Adjustment Scheme or the Coal Sector Adjustment Scheme.