The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has granted conditional authorization for a collaboration involving Energy Networks Australia, Synergy, and other specified parties. This collaboration aims to procure and implement a national public key infrastructure service designed to manage secure communications between consumer energy resources and various stakeholders in the energy grid.

Consumer energy resources include technologies such as rooftop solar cells, batteries, and electric vehicles. The ACCC believes that the proposed collaboration will yield public benefits that outweigh any potential detriments, provided that certain conditions are met.

These conditions include limiting the authorized conduct to the provision of public key infrastructure services that adhere to the Common Smart Inverter Profile – Australia standard. Additionally, the ACCC has imposed governance conditions requiring that the board of the National Energy Public Key Infrastructure Limited (NEPKI) includes independent directors with significant experience in the consumer energy resources sector, electricity market sector, and original equipment manufacturer sector.

Furthermore, the ACCC has mandated regular reporting on NEPKI's operations to ensure transparency and accountability. The authorization granted by the ACCC is valid until 30 June 2030, allowing for the necessary developments in the energy sector to take place.