Australian Telecommunications Alliance calls on energy regulator to recognise telco and power interdependency

The Australian Telecommunications Alliance (ATA) has urged the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) to update its Network Resilience Guidelines to better recognise the critical interdependency between electricity and telecommunications networks.

In a submission to the AER’s consultation on its Network Resilience Guidelines, the ATA argues that telecommunications and electricity networks operate as a connected system of critical infrastructure, and the resilience of these networks is increasingly co-dependent and inseparable.

During natural disasters, loss of mains power is the leading cause of telecommunications outages with localised disruption of the electricity grid having the potential to impact the continued operation of core telecommunications network infrastructure, if the use of backup generators is impossible and backup batteries have been depleted.

Storm or bushfire-induced blackouts and brownouts can also disrupt the operation of network termination devices (NTDs), Wi-Fi routers, laptops, tablets and mobile phone use within affected homes and businesses, which all require power to operate.

The availability and resilience of fixed, fixed wireless, mobile and satellite telecommunications networks are also increasingly relied upon by energy providers for monitoring their own respective power infrastructure, and coordinating outage management, notification and restoration activities.

The ATA argues that resilience planning should move beyond individual infrastructure assets and adopt a whole-of-system approach. The ATA has called for the AER’s new Network Resilience Guidelines to reflect communities’ critical dependency on the combined performance of electricity, telecommunications and other essential services during emergencies.

The ATA has called on the AER to:

• Recognise electricity and telecommunications as interdependent critical infrastructure sectors;
• Consider cascading impacts on telecommunications when assessing resilience investments;
• Recognise telecommunications connectivity as a core contributor to community resilience;
• Ensure resilience funding and incentive frameworks capture cross-sector benefits, such as maintaining emergency communications and reducing community disruption during disasters. 

The ATA recognises that both the telecommunications and energy sectors have made progress in recent years in the way they work together and share information during any crisis or emergency event.

Luke Coleman, ATA CEO, said: “It is now standard practice for major telecommunications network operators to have their Incident Controllers and Emergency Management Liaison Officers (EMLOs) embedded within the National Situation Rooms, working closely with Emergency Services in the lead up to, during, and after any major event.”

“These teams play an integral role in helping to keep people safe and communities connected wherever possible. They do an outstanding job, working around the clock to restore power and telecommunications as soon as it is safe to do so, when services have been impacted by natural disaster.”

“We are calling on the Australia Energy Regulator (AER) to update its Network Resilience Guidelines to formally identify and reflect this form of reciprocity on the collaborative working relationship between the two sectors regarding the operational status, damage assessment, and restoration activities across essential telecommunications and electricity infrastructure.”

The ATA submission aligns with growing government and industry focus on climate resilience, critical infrastructure interdependencies and improving service continuity for communities facing more frequent and severe weather events. 

The ATA’s submission can be found here