E&OE

ANGUS TAYLOR: Good morning everybody and welcome to the 21st COAG Energy Council Meeting.

While the festive season is just around the corner, the COAG Energy Council Meeting is coming at a really crucial time for Australian families and businesses. As we all know, they're hurting from high electricity prices. They want to make sure that this summer they're going to see the electricity system function well - that the lights will stay on, and that factories and businesses that are so reliant on a reliable, secure, supply of electricity are able to keep functioning even on the toughest days over the course of the summer.

Now we've heard - and I've heard and I know many of you have heard - from Australians about the importance of this agenda for them, for their businesses, for their families and for their jobs.

Today, crucially, we'll be agreeing on the final form of the Retailer Reliability Obligation, which is absolutely central to ensure that the future stability, security, and reliability of the electricity grid and I know all of us here are united in making sure we have a secure, reliable electricity grid in the coming years.

We have a very full agenda. Our deliberations today really can make a difference to all Australians and the onus is on us to make sure we are doing the right thing by Australians in the decisions we make today.

We'll be also discussing AEMO's outlook for the upcoming summer. This is very important to make sure that, as I say, the grid is prepared for that peak summer demand. Each year those preparations are becoming increasingly important and we'll be talking today about ensuring that we have everything in place for the summer that has begun, and more importantly, the coming months, which we know are the toughest months of the year for the National Electricity Market.

We have a lot to get through, so let's get down to work. Thanks to the media and can I ask you to leave the room and we'll roll our sleeves up and get stuck in.