On 27 October 2022 the Senate referred the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Legislation Amendment Bill 2022 to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 17 November 2022.

The close date for submissions is 2 November 2022.

About this inquiry:
The Commonwealth Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021 (OEI Act) entered into force on 2 June 2022. The bill would make amendments to the Customs Act 1901 to support the implementation of the OEI Act, including to:

• ensure appropriate security of offshore electricity infrastructure (OEI), by extending existing Commonwealth provisions relating to offshore infrastructure; and
• allow the Border Force to treat OEI in the same way as existing sea and resources installations for customs purposes, and for the Anti-Dumping Commission to treat OEI on the same basis regarding anti-dumping and countervailing measures.

The bill would also amend the OEI Act to provide appropriate administrative arrangements for an Offshore Infrastructure Registrar to be appointed and provided with ancillary staff.