Speaking at the International Pipeline & Offshore Contractors Association (IPLOCA) conference in Budapest, Hungary, on behalf of the Australian Pipeline Industry Association, MacDonald cited investor disenchantment and foreign companies exiting Australia as evidence that the current regulatory system was having a negative impact on the industry.
"The distraction provided by the economic regulators is particularly frustrating in view of the strong prospects for growth in natural gas demand," McDonald said.
The timing of the spray was somewhat ironic as the World Federation of Pipelines Industry Associations was looking at the Australian industry model and considering whether the co-operation upon which the model is based might be a useful example for other national and international organisations.
However, MacDonald said the uncertainty in the industry could be tied into the introduction of the current regulatory regime, the National Gas Code, in 1997.
"A national market had begun to take shape as pipelines crossed state borders and gas was delivered to new industries and their communities. Yet the introduction of the code and its selective interpretation by regulators created uncertainty. Our economic regulators are highly interventionist and lack accountability and transparency."
Previous lobbying by the Australian Pipeline Industry Association has led to a review of the application of the National Gas Code to transmission pipelines, which is now being undertaken by the Productivity Commission.
