Operational Reporting - Essential Energy

Country Energy
Annual Report 2007–2008
Finding better ways

FINDING BETTER WAYS
Country Energy is committed to finding better ways:
– to deliver essential services
– to meet the needs of our customers
– to develop innovative solutions
– to manage the environmental impacts of our
business
We do this because it makes business sense...
and because we live here too.
CONTENTS
2 Chairman’s and Managing
Director’s Report
4 Our Operations and Strategy
5 A Snapshot of our Performance
5 Our Targets and Results
ORGANISATIONAL HEALTH
6 Leader in Safety
12 Employer of Choice
OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE
18 Best Network Manager
24 Reputable Water Supplier
28 Successful National Retailer
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
32 Promoted by Customers
36 Valued Community Member
42 An Environmental Leader
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
48 Our Board
49 Our Executive
50 Corporate Governance
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Cover image: Lineworker Mark Pritchard on the Hay Plain
in Country Energy's South Western region.
58 Financial Statements
150 Index
151 Customer Service Centres
152 Contacts

31 October 2008
The Hon E Roozendaal MLC
The Hon J Tripodi MP
Treasurer
Minister for Finance
Level 36 Level 31
Governor Macquarie Tower
Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place 1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000 Sydney NSW 2000
Dear Ministers
We are pleased to submit the Annual Report covering Country Energy’s performance, operations
and financial results for the year ended 30 June 2008.
The report has been prepared in accordance with Section 24A of the State Owned Corporations Act
1989 and the Annual Reports (Statutory Bodies) Act 1984.
The past year has been one of consolidation and growth. We recorded substantial achievements
in our priority areas – maintaining our position among industry leaders in safety, network
management, customer service and corporate reputation.
This reflects our continued focus on investing in our core essential services capabilities and finding
better ways to respond to ongoing industry change.
We look forward to continuing to meet the expectations of our customers and shareholders well
into the future.
Copies of the report have been submitted to the Minister for Energy, the NSW Auditor-General and
key customer and stakeholder groups.
Yours sincerely,
Barbara Ward
Chairman
Craig Murray
Managing Director
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CHAIRMAN’S AND MANAGING DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Country Energy’s overall strategy
remains simple – be Australia’s best
essential services provider.
We recognise the ongoing position of responsibility we
hold, and continue to strive to exceed the expectations
of our customers and shareholders.
We are pleased to report on another year of substantial
achievement in our priority areas for the year – financial
performance, customer satisfaction, organisational health
and operational excellence – priorities reflected in the
structure of this Annual Report.
We recorded an earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) result
of $259.2 million, a satisfactory return given the high cost
energy market conditions, greatly assisted by substantial
operating cost savings achieved throughout the year.
Early indications for 2008–09 show some easing in wholesale
energy costs, and hence a better outlook for the year ahead.
In the past year we again delivered the level of service our
customers have come to expect, especially on customer
call response times and the time taken to resolve customer
issues – more than 90 per cent of customer complaints
were resolved within four days or less.
Customer satisfaction surveys carried out during the year
also reflected the outstanding efforts of our employees to
position Country Energy as a world-class customer service
organisation.
A robust and reliable power network is essential to the
1,500 plus communities we serve. We have continued to
invest in our electricity distribution network – Australia’s
largest – through a record $630.5 million network capital
investment and maintenance program. Significant new
infrastructure was installed across all of our nine regions,
complemented by a substantial maintenance program to
improve supply reliability.
Our continuing investment in the power network was
rewarded over the 2007–08 year, also greatly assisted by
relatively mild storm conditions – we recorded our best
reliability result on record with the average minutes lost per
customer at 225 and well within our target.
Country Energy’s number one priority remains safety, and
one of the business’ proudest achievements has been a
transformation in workplace safety performance over the
past four years. We recorded another significant reduction in
our Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR), with a result of
2.5 as at June 2008, down from 5.8 at the same time last
year, and now amongst the best performers in our industry.
While our aim is for zero incidents, this achievement
underscores the efforts of all employees to find better and
safer ways to perform their roles.
We again undertook a major intake of apprentices, with 48
recruits from across New South Wales joining us in January
2008, as part of a total of 117 apprenticeship positions –
including 24 Indigenous apprenticeships – created during
the year.
With governments at all levels introducing measures to
address carbon pollution and emissions, it is vital that
Country Energy is agile in adapting to change, and in
assisting customers to adapt to new challenges.
We again responded to strong customer interest in
renewables, with 60 per cent growth in the number of
our customers purchasing countrygreen®– our suite of
accredited GreenPower products. And we looked inwards,
commencing the first phase of a carbon reduction program
by measuring our entire environmental footprint, to ensure
a verifiable fact base from which to extend our waste, water
and carbon reduction plans.
Finally, we are about to embark on a fundamental change in
the way we operate our electricity network, and the capabilities
it can provide. During the year we announced our plans for
an ‘Intelligent Network’ initiative – applying digital technology
to the power grid to improve reliability, support the growth of
renewables like solar and wind, and make energy efficiency
simpler for customers through the use of advanced metering.
This potentially far-reaching initiative is being developed in
collaboration with IBM and a global coalition of energy
utilities. The first major element of the initiative, a dedicated
Intelligent Network Research and Education Centre at
Queanbeyan, will be completed in 2008, and will demonstrate
how network based technologies can benefit customers and
the environment.
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As we said at the start, we do all of this because we recognise
our responsibilities. This year we again participated in the
Corporate Responsibility Index program conducted by the St
James Ethics Centre and its partners, to enhance the capacity
of businesses to develop, measure and communicate corporate
responsibility. Country Energy’s responsibility effort was
recognised with the Best Progress Award for 2007, building on
the Best Newcomer Award we received in 2006, and we remain
committed to better performance still in the future.
For the coming year, we have redefined and simplified our
core strategic priorities. These priorities are now, simply –
safety, service, value and sustainability. These priorities
reflect a renewed focus on our core responsibilities, and the
expectations of our customers and shareholders, as major
changes in our industry unfold.
The outstanding results achieved to date are a credit to
the commitment and professionalism of our employees
and fellow directors. Country Energy’s employees continue
to accept the challenge of finding better ways to deliver
essential services to the communities in which we live
and work – because we live here too.
“Country Energy’s employees continue
to accept the challenge of finding
better ways to deliver essential
services to the communities in which
we live and work – because we live
here too.”
Barbara Ward, Chairman.
Barbara Ward
Chairman
Craig Murray
Managing Director
Finding better ways 3

OUR OPERATIONS AND STRATEGY
Country Energy is a leading Australian
essential services business owned by the
New South Wales Government.
Country Energy
Country Energy is a leading Australian essential services
business owned by the New South Wales Government,
with a strong reputation for safety, service and value.
We retail electricity, natural and bottled gas, internet services
and energy and water management solutions in six states
and territories, and we operate Australia’s largest electricity
network across 95 per cent of New South Wales.
We also provide reticulated natural gas to around 25,000
customers in southern New South Wales, and water and
sewerage services to 10,000 customers in far western
New South Wales.
A national energy retailer
Country Energy provides competitive energy offers and
value-added services – including renewable energy,
broadband and dial-up internet solutions, LPG, energy
efficiency advice and flexible payment options – to more
than 870,000 customers in New South Wales, Victoria,
Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the Australian
Capital Territory.
Operator of Australia’s largest electricity network
We have a rare geographic and demographic diversity.
We live and work from the outback to the coast, managing
around 200,000 kilometres of powerlines and 1.4 million
power poles in urban, rural and remote environments.
Since forming in July 2001, we have invested around
$1,500 million in maintaining and improving our
network assets.
One of Australia’s strongest regional businesses
Our customers are served by some 4,000 employees
from 142 customer and field service centres across
nine New South Wales regions – a structure designed
to put our employees close to the communities we serve
– and four business centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane
and Newcastle.
Strengthening communities
We’re actively renewing our workforce and providing local
employment opportunities, having created almost 670
apprenticeships since forming in 2001, and restoring service
levels by opening 45 new customer and field service centres
across country and coastal New South Wales.
Environmentally responsible
We provide expert energy and water management solutions
and have conducted Australia’s first residential smart
metering trial to help customers better manage their energy
use and costs. We’re a major purchaser of solar, hydro and
wind energy and we offer customers a range of accredited
renewable energy options through our countrygreen®products.
Country Energy’s core focus areas of responsibility are
framed within our Strategy Statement. We aim to be
Australia’s best utility by:
Financial Performance; Customer Satisfaction; Operational
Excellence; Organisational Health and
excellence, teamwork and enthusiasm.
Our Strategy Statement communicates our goals,
targets and values. These are directly aligned to a set
of measurable performance indicators contained within
our ‘corporate dashboard’ which effectively links our
whole-of-business strategy with the activities of
individual business units.
The Strategy Statement and the planning framework that
underpins it are reviewed annually and are made available
to all employees.
We are pleased to reflect on our strategic and operational
performance over the past year.
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A SNAPSHOT OF OUR PERFORMANCE
2.5
Lowest
1 17
apprenticeships
95
60
$630.5
million
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR)
on record
created – continuing our focus
on renewing our workforce and creating local
employment opportunities
per cent of domestic customer complaints resolved
within four working days
per cent growth in GreenPower customer numbers
record network capital investment and
maintenance program
OUR TARGETS AND RESULTS
Key performance area Key performance indicator Our performance
Financial Performance
given the high cost energy market
conditions
Customer Satisfaction
Operational Excellence
Organisational Health
to date
reflected by SAIDI results
way employee satisfaction is measured
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LEADER IN SAFETY
Powerline worker Gary Roughley has
to manage many potential hazards
each day.
Our number one priority is to ensure
the health, safety and well-being of our employees,
contractors, visitors and the public.
Our aim is to integrate health and safety into everything
we do, and we’re achieving this by:
effective implementation of our Health and Safety Policy
products and services, consistent with the health and
safety risk they pose
codes and licences
knowledge and skills they need to undertake their work
in a healthy and safe manner
employees and visitors to abide by all health and safety
policies, procedures and other requirements
communication about health and safety with our
employees, contractors and labour hire employees
implementing preventative actions
objectives and targets
out for their workmates, families and local communities.
Year in review
The integrated strategies we’re rolling out across our
operations to change our workplace safety culture helped
us achieve a record low in our employee Lost Time Injury
Frequency Rate this year. Our public education programs
helped to achieve a 50 per cent reduction in reportable
public safety incidents.
While we can never be complacent when it comes to safety,
these results show that we’re moving in the right direction.
The new safety initiatives we’ve introduced this year will help
us build on these improvements in the coming year.
Country Energy is committed to improving health and
safety for our own employees and delivering a range of
safety programs and initiatives for the public and external
organisations. Our ultimate aim is for zero incidents and
injuries and we made strong progress this year, with key
indicators – lost time injury frequency and severity, time to
return to work and reportable public safety incidents – all
trending downwards.
Internally, we continued to focus on promoting operational
safety improvements and enhancing safety awareness,
particularly among ‘at risk’ groups. Two major initiatives –
Powerful Minds and the Powerful Apprentice injury prevention
program – were launched in 2007–08, building on our skills
and capability in this area.
Externally, we continued to build relationships with a range
of industry sectors such as agriculture, construction and
emergency services, developing safety partnerships and
promoting greater electrical hazard awareness. This has
contributed in halving the number of reportable public
safety incidents in the past year.
“The moment I get home from
work I see the four most
important reasons for safety
in the workplace.”
Steve Picton performing maintenance work on a 66kV feeder
near Inverell.
Employee, husband and father, Gary comes home to wife Kristie,
6 Finding better ways sons Liam 4 and Lae 2 and daughter Lani 3.
Finding better ways 7
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LEADER IN SAFETY
In May 2008, we achieved our lowest ever
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate
(LTIFR) of 2.5.
Performance highlights
In May 2008, we achieved our lowest ever Lost Time Injury
Frequency Rate (LTIFR) of 2.5.
This year, 77 (that’s more than half) of Country Energy
worksites reached or exceeded five years without a Lost
Time Injury, compared to 41 sites in 2006–07.
The number of reportable public safety incidents notifiable
to the Department of Water and Energy fell by 50 per cent
to a low of 13 this year, down from 26 in 2006–07.
Of 1,272 safety process audits focusing on premises, work
teams and individual employees conducted in the past year,
we achieved an average score of 96 per cent compliance.
We achieved a 30 per cent reduction in employee safety
incidents requiring formal investigation, reflecting a
significant decrease in the number and severity of incidents.
We launched a new initiative, the Powerful Minds program,
to improve identification and management of potential
mental health issues in the workplace.
We also launched the Powerful Apprentice injury prevention
program to target our new recruits with a range of specific
health and safety management initiatives.
Comprehensive public safety fact sheets were published
on our website to encourage greater electrical hazard
awareness within our communities.
Promoting better employee health and
safety awareness
Occupational Health and Safety Management
Country Energy’s Occupational Health and Safety
Management System (OHSMS) provides a health and
safety framework for all systems and activities within
the company, with a focus on continuous improvement
and quality management. During 2007–08, two independent
surveillance audits conducted by NCS International Pty
Ltd provided continued certification to AS/NZS Standard
4801 : 2001 Occupational Health and Safety Management
Systems.
During 2007–08, Country Energy developed a new
Occupational Health, Safety and Environment (OHS&E)
support system, TotalSAFE, which will support all Country
Energy’s OHS&E functions and enable simpler reporting.
It will also track all types of safety, health, environmental
and network incidents. This new system will be phased in
to replace our existing Works Improvement Notice system
from July 2008.
A safe work culture
Feedback from some 300 employees who participated
in 20 focus groups across Country Energy during late
2007–08 played a pivotal role in identifying issues,
and will help us develop initiatives aimed at improving
Country Energy’s safety culture in the coming year.
Lost Time Injury Severity Rate (LTISR)
Days Lost per million hours worked
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Lost Time Injuries (LTIs) and Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR)
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
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8 Finding better ways
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
LTIFR LTIs

Workers compensation
This year, Country Energy’s focus has been on facilitating early and
appropriate return to work by reinforcing the processes to be followed
by injured employees and their supervisors when a workplace injury
occurs. The Workers Compensation Team visited the majority of Country
Energy worksites across New South Wales to promote understanding
of how workers compensation supports employees following an injury,
and ensure that injury management information is up to date, relevant
and accessible.
In three of the four target areas set by WorkCover – Injury Management
(absences), Cost of Claims, and Injury Management (suitable duties) –
Country Energy is meeting or exceeding set targets. In one area – Injury
Prevention – we were 0.3 per cent off meeting the set target.
Powerful Health
Country Energy’s worksite health promotion program, Powerful Health,
has now been running successfully for four years. During 2007–08,
Country Energy employees took part in a range of Powerful Health
programs including:
health initiatives for their co-workers
a health activity or equipment
in sports/health activity
their teams competed to improve their lifestyle choices.
Time to Return to Pre-Injury Duties (PID)
25
20
Weeks to PID
15
10
5
0
2006 2007 2008
Average for month Rolling 12 months
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LEADER IN SAFETY
New health and well-being programs launched
in 2007– 08
Country Energy launched two major pilot programs – the
Powerful Health Field Day and the Pit Stop Men’s Health
program – and three new programs focusing on manual
handling, mental health and the safety and well-being of
Country Energy apprentices in 2007–08.
Powerful Health Field Day
A pilot Powerful Health Field Day was conducted in Port
Macquarie in April 2008, with around 400 employees
participating in a range of information sessions and
activities including physical fitness testing, lung screening,
massage, ergonomics and influenza vaccinations. Following
overwhelmingly positive feedback, similar health field days
are being scheduled for other regions during 2008–09.
Pit Stop Men’s Health program
A pilot Pit Stop Men’s Health program was also launched in
April 2008 at the Orange Field Service Centre. Pit Stop is
based on a mechanical concept, likening parts of the body
to an engine. Employees can have their oil levels (blood
pressure) tested, and their torsion (flexibility) and chassis
(waist measurement) checked to see if their body passes
the pits with flying colours or is issued with a yellow sticker
for follow-up maintenance.
Around 50 employees attended the launch day and we plan
to roll out the program to all regional offices and a number
of field service centres over the next 18 months.
Manual Handling Solutions program
The majority of Country Energy employees’ workers
compensation claims are for musculo-skeletal injuries,
which can mainly be attributed to manual handling.
In February 2007, we launched the Manual Handling
Solutions program to promote greater awareness of manual
handling as a potential workplace injury hazard across our
operations. Training sessions are now being conducted
for new employees as part of corporate induction, and for
all employees in every worksite to help them assess and
address the risks of manual handling injuries in their roles.
Powerful Minds program
During 2007–08, Country Energy developed and launched an
occupational stress management program, Powerful Minds,
to improve the awareness of mental well-being amongst our
employees. The program covers two main mental health
management areas – occupational stress risk factors in the
workplace, and mental health problems.
All Country Energy executives and senior managers
participated in Powerful Minds pilot groups during November
and December 2007, with another 10 courses run for
managers and team leaders during the financial year.
All managers will have taken part in the training by
September 2008.
Powerful Apprentice program
This year, Country Energy commenced a four-year injury
prevention program for a group of first year apprentices who
were employed in 2008 and who attended the Goulburn
training centre. During 2008–11, the Powerful Apprentice
program will provide this group with a range of injury
prevention activities. A study of the program will be carried
out and the results achieved and experience gained will be
used to develop future injury prevention initiatives.
Joe Doust, Pole Inspector, undergoes a lung assessment from
Dr Boon Lee.
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Promoting greater public safety awareness
The number of reportable public safety incidents notifiable to the
Department of Water and Energy (DWE) involving Country Energy
infrastructure continues to decline as a result of a range of strategies
and plans put in place by safety and operations teams across our
network footprint. Testament to the success of these public safety
initiatives has been a 50 per cent reduction in reportable public safety
incidents compared to the previous year.
This year, we’ve focused on identifying ‘at risk’ groups – including
emergency services employees, earthmovers, construction workers,
cotton growers, pilots, transport and agricultural groups, and local and
state government workers – and providing them with education and
awareness programs to improve safety outcomes.
We regularly highlighted seasonal and topical public safety issues in
local and state-wide media articles, and ran face-to-face electrical safety
awareness sessions for more than 3,700 people in ‘at risk’ groups,
such as civil construction and agricultural sectors, and aerial and
transport groups. These sessions included pre-harvest electrical hazard
awareness, delivered in conjunction with organisations such as Farm
Safe, GrainCorp, WorkCover and the sugar cane industry.
We reached audiences in the rural sector by promoting safety awareness
at 11 industry and agricultural field days and a number of regional shows
and events (detailed in our Valued Community Member section).
We also provided electrical hazard awareness training to emergency
services employees – from the NSW Rural Fire Service, NSW Ambulance,
NSW Fire Brigades, NSW Police and the NSW Volunteer Rescue
Association – who are often the first to attend incidents and must be fully
aware of potential safety hazards, such as fallen or sagging powerlines.
To further promote public safety awareness, we produced and distributed
new public safety education material, including an activity book for
primary school aged children that raises awareness of electrical hazards
around the home and at play, such as flying a kite near powerlines.
We also updated our range of public safety fact sheets and made them
available on Country Energy’s website – www.countryenergy.com.au.
The fact sheets cover a range of areas such as Community, Emergency
Services, Agri-Business, Construction, Vegetation Management and Natural
Gas Safety.
Reportable Public Safety Incidents
Number of incidents
200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
00–01
01–02
02–03
03–04
04–05
05–06
06–07
07–08
Top image: Apprentices at the Parkes training centre.
Bottom image: Live line worker Brett Lentfer at work in Wooli.
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EMPLOYER OF CHOICE
Country Energy has a clear goal
to be recognised as an
‘employer of choice’.
“Country Energy really looks after
its people. We have the support
and resources we need to manage
people’s well-being in a holistic way
and treat their total health needs.”
Country Energy has a clear goal to be recognised as
an ‘employer of choice’. We are committed to providing
our employees with jobs and career opportunities that
meet both their individual needs and the evolving needs
of our business.
The challenges we face include skills shortages, regional
and remote employment, an ageing workforce, diversity and
equity, safety and stringent regulatory requirements.
We’re meeting these challenges by:
stakeholders about human resource issues
respect at all times
discrimination, harassment, exploitation and intimidation
mastered skills
constant eye toward self-improvement.
Performance highlights
This year, 68 apprentices successfully completed their
trade qualification.
We recruited 48 new apprentices in January as part of
a total of 117 apprenticeships created in the 2007–08
year. This included internal and external positions and
24 Indigenous powerline worker apprenticeships as
part of our Structured Training and Employment Project
Memorandum of Understanding with the Department
of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations,
signed in August 2007.
We won the 2007 NSW Aboriginal Employment and
Business Awards, Public Sector Category.
We made an additional 45 positions available to existing
employees to undertake a professional development
program, a key component of which is enrolment in the
Diploma of Electrical Engineering with TAFE NSW.
We moved from offering engineering scholarships
to offering engineering cadetships, providing greater
employment certainty to new recruits and increasing
the program’s attractiveness.
Manager Health Services and occupational therapist Colleen Ryan
explains to electrical worker Darren McCallum how to look after his
back after returning to work from a non-work related injury.
Meeting future skills needs
Indigenous program
Our award-winning Indigenous Employment program supports
Country Energy’s long-term commitment to the development of
a workforce which is truly representative of our customer base.
In 2007–08, we promoted the employment program through
careers workshops, expos, educational institutions, job
networks and other events, including NAIDOC Week. We
also continued to forge partnerships with Indigenous
leaders, schools and other educational institutions in
regional communities across NSW to promote employment
opportunities with Country Energy.
A further 24 Indigenous powerline worker apprentices were
employed this year as part of our Structured Training and
Employment Project Memorandum of Understanding with
the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace
Relations, signed in August 2007.
We rolled out tutorial support programs across our footprint
to help new and existing Indigenous apprentices with the
theoretical components of their apprenticeships.
We also provided training for our Indigenous contact officers
– who run Country Energy’s Indigenous network support
program – in mental health first aid, interviewing and
Powerful Minds (see page 10).
The Indigenous network continues to grow and prosper to
around 120 Indigenous employees.
In November 2007, Country Energy won the NSW Aboriginal
Employment and Business Awards, Public Sector Category
for its commitment to recruitment, training and retention of
Indigenous employees.
Apprentice recruitment programs
Country Energy continued to provide long-term career
opportunities for local people within its footprint area,
appointing 48 new apprentices in January as part of a total
apprentice intake of 117 throughout the 2007–08 year.
This year also saw 68 apprentices complete their
apprenticeships, boosting the ranks of the next generation
of highly skilled tradespersons.
Since 2001, Country Energy has created more than 670
apprenticeships – this achievement demonstrates our active
commitment to restoring local service levels and renewing
our workforce to meet future business needs.
Colleen manages an in-house team of seven therapists that supports
employees with their physical and mental health issues through a
12 Finding better ways range of initiatives and interventions.
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EMPLOYER OF CHOICE
Country Energy is recognised as
an industry leader and innovator in the
area of skills recognition.
Supporting employee development
Engineering training
The market for people with electrical engineering skills is
extremely competitive, with demand from energy distributors,
providers and the mining sector in Australia and overseas.
To attract and retain skilled electrical engineers and
provide employees with skills development and career path
opportunities, Country Energy is providing financial and other
support for 88 employees who are undertaking a Diploma of
Electrical Engineering course through our partnership with TAFE
NSW at Port Macquarie, Dubbo and Wagga Wagga. Country
Energy is also supporting 20 employees who are studying an
Advanced Diploma to continue their skills development.
During 2007–08, we recruited three people to the role of
Trainee Technical Officer, providing an opportunity to take part
in training programs tailored to suit their existing qualification
level. The programs will up-skill them to the level of an
electrical engineering officer in Country Energy.
Engineering cadetships
One of the most exciting changes to Country Energy’s
developmental programs for 2007–08 was our move from
offering scholarships to offering engineering cadetships.
Through this new program, cadets are employed on a
full-time basis and have access to award entitlements,
and payment of university fees and text books.
Four cadets joined Country Energy in 2007–08 and existing
scholarship recipients were moved to the cadetship program
at the start of 2008. The cadets are spread across Country
Energy’s geographical area and attend a number of different
universities.
Over the next financial year Country Energy intends to recruit
a further three cadets. This continued commitment to the
development of employees within the engineering area
will be a key initiative in addressing our future succession
planning needs.
Graduate engineer program
This year, three recent graduates joined our highly
competitive graduate engineer program. This program is
designed to provide participants with exposure to as many
aspects of the electrical distribution industry as possible
and to consolidate the knowledge they gained during their
tertiary studies.
Country Energy also offers graduates the opportunity to
undertake postgraduate studies in Electrical Power Systems.
The subjects chosen are closely matched to the graduates’
workplace rotational placement – providing a link between
theoretical studies and practical on-the-job experience.
Skilling Up
In 2007–08, we introduced the Skilling Up program to
develop our frontline leaders’ range of management and
leadership skills.
This program is provided in partnership with TAFE institutes
across the state, using specialist external training providers
and local TAFE institutes to deliver frontline leadership skills
to 420 employees, with each of Country Energy’s business
units represented.
The Skilling Up program delivers the following nationally
recognised qualifications:
(Frontline Management) Qualification
Qualification.
The additional nationally recognised qualification – Diploma
of Business (Frontline Management) – will be achieved by
those employees who nominate to continue and successfully
complete an extension program.
Practising Powerline Worker program
During the year, more than 500 of our powerline workers and
electrical technicians who work on the overhead electricity
distribution network took part in an initiative to provide them
with a number of learning opportunities designed to:
associated safe work methods relevant to construction,
maintenance and augmentation of Country Energy’s
electricity distribution network
to challenge attitudes and behaviours towards
workplace safety
content to reinforce the significant role that qualified
tradespersons play in mentoring apprentices.
This program is currently being delivered through Country
Energy Training Centres in Parkes, Goulburn and Grafton and
is due to be completed by December 2008.
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Powerful Skills
Our Powerful Skills program is a targeted
competency based learning, development
and progression framework designed to make
Country Energy an employer of choice and meet
workforce challenges such as industry-wide
skills shortages and an ageing workforce profile.
The Powerful Skills program enables
Country Energy to identify, assess and
recognise existing employee competencies,
provide development and skill requirements
and map future career path opportunities
within our organisation.
Through this program, we’ve identified
appropriate national qualifications for a range
of roles within the business and allowed for the
development of flexible progression guidelines
and competency based position descriptions.
This also assists Country Energy in identifying
succession planning opportunities, while
aligning identified training requirements directly
to organisational, team and individual needs.
Almost 2,000 team members have been
involved in analysing the skills and knowledge
they use to carry out their daily roles. The
constructive outcomes of the Powerful Skills
program have been implemented in more than
40 roles across the business so far.
TAFE NSW partnership
Our TAFE NSW partnership continues to
be pivotal in providing recognition of our
employees’ extensive levels of skill and
knowledge identified through our Powerful Skills
program. The partnership, now in its second year,
involves TAFE consultants working closely with
employees in each of our regions to identify
training needs and coordinate the delivery of
training across TAFE NSW.
Through the partnership, we’ve been able
to employ the extensive Recognition of
Prior Learning provisions of the Australian
Qualification Training Framework to provide
advanced standing for all employees involved.
This has significantly reduced our training costs,
and considerably reduced the time taken to
achieve qualifications.
We’ve gained recognition of the project at
state and national level by providing outlines
of project activities to an Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) delegation and presentations to the
Council of Australian Governments (COAG),
the Department of Employment Education and
Workplace Relations (DEWR) and the NSW
Department of Education and Training (DET).
Country Energy has also been successful
in applying for a number of Federal funding
opportunities, including COAG Program funding,
Reframing the Future, Australian Flexible
Learning Framework and Workplace English
Language and Literacy which have made a
significant contribution to the overall training
costs involved in up-skilling our employees.
The project is assisting Country Energy in
cementing our position as an industry leader
in skills recognition innovation, and we plan to
build our workforce capabilities further in the
year ahead.
Promoting employee health
and well-being
Powerful Health program
Country Energy’s workplace health promotion
program, Powerful Health, has two major goals:
Powerful Health goes well beyond the basics
of health education, addressing the four
cornerstones of innovative health promotion.
These include:
Policy interventions – such as introducing
guidelines for corporate nutrition, which specify
healthy catering requirements for all events
and training sessions conducted within
Country Energy.
Economic interventions – providing a $99
corporate subsidy per employee for health and
fitness activities, a $500 grant for team based
sports, subsidised influenza vaccination and
skin cancer screening.
Organisational interventions – establishing
a Healthy Helper network through which
employees are encouraged to deliver information
to co-workers about the Powerful Health
program; host Health Field Days to deliver health
and well-being information first-hand by health
experts; and contribute promotional material and
support for employees competing in community
events, such as the Sydney City2Surf.
Health education – regular information to
employees provided through safety points,
training sessions, intranet sites and information
packs about health issues.
Powerful Health goes well
beyond the basics of health
education, addressing the four
cornerstones of innovative
health promotion.
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Finding better ways 15

EMPLOYER OF CHOICE
Country Energy is
a corporate leader in Indigenous
employment.
Powerful Minds program
Country Energy is committed to both the physical safety and
mental well-being of our employees. In 2007, we launched
Powerful Minds to identify and address issues associated with
occupational stress. Powerful Minds covers two main areas
of mental health management – occupational stress risk
factors in the workplace and mental health problems – with a
focus on preventing mental illness and providing best practice
early intervention services. All senior managers attended
pilot group training in 2007, and all supervisors will have
completed training by September 2008.
Mental Health First Aid training is also being provided for key
groups, such as return to work coordinators, occupational
health and safety committee members and customer service
employees dealing with the public.
Promoting equal employment opportunity
Country Energy values the contributions made by all our
employees and is committed to maintaining a workplace
that is free from discrimination.
Treating everyone fairly and having an employee base that
reflects the diversity of our customers fosters a healthy,
safe and productive workplace that helps deliver excellent
customer service.
In 2007–08, Indigenous apprentices represented 17 per
cent of Country Energy’s total apprentice numbers, while
overall Indigenous employee participation levels were almost
3 per cent of the total workforce – above the New South
Wales Government’s public sector target of 2 per cent.
We’ve built on our Indigenous Employment Program through
ongoing implementation of our Indigenous Employment
and Development Strategy to provide long-term career and
leadership development opportunities.
Country Energy is recognised as a Corporate Leader in
Indigenous employment by the Australian Government
in a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department
of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR).
A fair go at work
New policy guidelines for preventing and managing bullying
and harassment were issued to Country Energy employees
in February 2008, setting a clear expectation and process
for ensuring a safe and fair workplace.
The release of the new guidelines is being supported by a
comprehensive training and awareness campaign through
the Powerful Minds mental health first aid program.
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Management Plan
During 2007–08, the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
Management Plan has driven further progress in promoting
equity and diversity, including recruitment of an Employment
Equity and Diversity Manager to increase effectiveness and
delivery of EEO strategies across the organisation. Some of
the initiatives put in place during the year include:
capture bullying and harassment complaints
exhibition display banners to promote EEO groups in
non-traditional roles
induction programs
new employee engagement survey to ensure that the
needs and experiences of EEO groups can be more readily
discerned from research results and influence strategy
Diversity Contact Officer network across all nine regions.
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16 Finding better ways

Measuring our employee satisfaction
Since 2004, Country Energy has been conducting two employee surveys,
alternating every nine months.
In 2006–07, we recorded continued improvements in our employee
opinion and engagement survey. We combined the results of both surveys
last year to record an overall employee satisfaction result of 89 per cent.
In late 2007, we reviewed our approach to these surveys to ensure that
the information we’re receiving from our employees can be used to find
better ways to engage people and make Country Energy a better place to
work. As part of this, we reviewed our ability to link business performance
metrics with employee engagement.
We found that having a better understanding of how a team or division’s
work life engages our employees will help us identify the areas we should
focus on to drive changes for that team or division.
The next survey, incorporating this revised approach, will be held during
July 2008.
Table 1. Trends in the representation of EEO target groups
Percentage of total workforce
EEO Group Target 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Women 50% 21% 21% 21% 21% 21%
Aboriginal people and 2.0% 1.2% 1.1% 2.6% 2.4% 2.8%
Torres Strait Islanders
People whose first
language was not
English
20% 0% 0% 1% 1% 0%
People with a
disability
People with a disability
requiring work-related
adjustment
12% 5% 8% 10% 7% 2%
7% 1.3% 2.5% 2.4% 2.2% 0.7%
Table 2. Trends in the distribution of EEO target groups
EEO Group Target 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Women 100 73 75 79 90 90
Aboriginal people and 100 72 67 91 69 72
Torres Strait Islanders
People whose first
language was not
English
100 n/a n/a 104 119 n/a
People with a
disability
People with a disability
requiring work-related
adjustment
100 107 107 104 105 107
100 104 107 98 101 106
Notes to tables:
1 Employee numbers are as at 30 June 2008.
2 Excludes casual employees.
3 A Distribution Index of 100 indicates that the centre of the distribution of the EEO
group across salary levels is equivalent to that of other employees. Values less than
100 mean that the EEO group tends to be more concentrated at lower salary levels
than is the case for other employees. The more pronounced this tendency is, the lower
the index will be. In some cases the index may be more than 100, indicating that the
EEO group is less concentrated at lower salary levels.
4 The Distribution Index is not calculated where EEO group or non-EEO group numbers
are less than 20.
5 Data is compiled from information volunteered by employees.
Indigenous apprentice Matthew Smyth from Casino during training.
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Finding better ways 17

BEST NETWORK MANAGER
Country Energy operates Australia’s
largest electricity network, which spans 95 per cent
of New South Wales.
We manage around 200,000 kilometres of powerlines –
which, laid end to end, could wrap around the earth five
times – and maintain 1.4 million power poles across urban,
coastal, mountain, tableland and outback environments.
Since 2001, we’ve invested around $1,500 million in
maintaining and enhancing our network.
Year in review
This year, Country Energy delivered its greatest ever
capital program, investing more than $404.5 million in
networks and infrastructure and more than $226 million
in maintenance and operational works to maintain and
enhance our network, and deliver essential services across
regional New South Wales.
We focused on delivering increased power supply reliability
and security to meet demands for greater capacity, and
we’ve undertaken significant new infrastructure projects
in every region across the state.
The success of our substantial maintenance and operational
works program – including asset inspections, installation
of protection equipment, fauna protection, preventative
maintenance and vegetation management, aided by a mild
storm season – can be seen in our best reliability result
on record.
Finding better ways of using our existing
network assets
While electricity consumption has steadily increased over
several decades, we’ve seen much stronger growth in peak
demand in recent years. This is being partially driven by the
increased use of domestic air conditioners which is driving up
consumption during the summer months.
Growth in energy demand and the associated need to
maintain and expand our existing network means that
Country Energy is continually seeking ways of managing
power network capacity and considering alternatives
to expanding the network. For example, for substantial
projects costing more than $10 million, we carry out public
consultation to seek out alternatives to network expansion.
We’re also researching non-network solutions to reinforce
power supply in geographically remote areas.
In the past, our traditional approach has been to replace
and upgrade the capacity of many kilometres of powerlines
to improve power quality. This year, we’ve been researching
systems that store energy during times when consumption
is low and release it when consumption is high. Potentially,
energy from these storage systems could be supplemented
with renewable sources of energy – for example, from
customers who generate excess capacity through solar
panels – making these combined solutions both economic
and less carbon-intensive.
Customer connections,
infrastructure upgrades
and planned and unplanned
supply interruptions are all
in a day’s work for Network
Operator Doug Giddins.
Performance highlights
“Every day is different,” says Doug as he checks vital
information on the banks of screens at the Port Macquarie
Network Operations Centre.
Result 225 minutes
Asset management plan Target Adherence Result Implemented
– significant achievements reflected by SAIDI
“It can get pretty hectic in here, particularly during the
summer storm season, but we’ve got a great team who are
18 Finding better ways dedicated to looking after supply to our customers.”
Finding better ways 19
Home

BEST NETWORK MANAGER
Customer generated power being fed into the grid
has increased from around 20,000kWh to 80,000kWh
over the past two years.
Embedded generation
Increasingly, commercial organisations are installing their
own renewable energy generation systems, including
wind farms, landfill gas plants, solar farms and coal seam
methane plants. Additionally, a growing number of households
are becoming micro-scale power generators to help reduce
their electricity bills.
In the past year, we’ve seen growth of around 40 per cent
in customer-generated capacity fed into the electricity grid.
The amount of supply capacity currently being fed into the
grid is easily managed by existing infrastructure. However,
if current trends continue we envisage that new technologies
employed by our Intelligent Network will have to manage
electricity being generated at potentially thousands of points
throughout the grid.
Managing our network assets
Our network investments and asset management plans
reflect our commitment to improve supply reliability for
customers and reduce supply interruptions; boost power
supply capacity to meet growth demands and high peak
loads; replace and maintain existing infrastructure; and
better utilise our existing asset base.
Nik McRae operates radio controls for an elevated work platform
bucket during line maintenance works in Barney Street, Armidale.
Traffic control markers keep vehicles out of the work area.
A live line crew fit insulating covers to a new pole in preparation
for the task of hoisting it into position to replace an old pole in
the Cowra CBD. The old pole was replaced to allow for a larger
pole carrying extra conductors to service a large supermarket
development in the town.
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20 Finding better ways

Snapshot – major regional network
investments
We commenced or completed a number of
significant investment projects during the year,
including:
Far North Coast
for regional growth and meet increased
demand – $15 million. Two-year project due
for completion in 2008–09.
undergrounding of one kilometre of overhead
powerlines in Cudgen Nature Reserve wetland
– $2 million. Completed in 2007–08.
Mid North Coast
improve the reliability of rural powerlines
across the region – $2.3 million. Completed
in 2007–08.
reliability and boost capacity – $7.2 million.
Completed in 2007–08.
Northern
zone substation to a new 66/11kV substation
– $13 million. Completed in 2007–08.
reliability and flexibility of the network –
$3.3 million. Completed in 2007–08.
South Western
associated powerlines to cater for a new
medical centre development in Albury –
$360,000. Completed in 2007–08.
33,000 volt powerline to cater for increased
demand and improved supply reliability –
$12 million. Two-year project due for
completion in 2008–09.
North Western
Merrygoen to improve quality of supply –
$3.9 million. Completed in 2007–08.
Shire to improve safety and supply reliability –
$927,000. Completed in 2007–08.
Far West
Broken Hill zone substation – $526,000.
Completed in 2007–08.
network to improve supply quality and
reliability – $560,000. Completed in
2007–08.
Riverina
Coolamon and Matong to improve quality of
supply and reliability – $126,000. Completed
in 2007–08.
for increased demand and improve reliability
– $2.2 million. Two-year project due for
completion in 2008–09.
Central Western
to meet increasing power supply demands
and reliability – $1.2 million. Project
commenced in 2007–08 and to be completed
in 2008–09.
Jemalong to cater for increased demand
and improve supply quality and reliability –
$1.8 million. Completed in 2007–08.
South Eastern
Coast to improve supply reliability and reduce
need for tree trimming works – $3.5 million
spent in 2007–08.
at Batemans Bay zone substation –
$2.8 million. Completed in 2007–08.
This year, Country Energy
made its largest ever network
investment – $404.5 million.
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Finding better ways 21

BEST NETWORK MANAGER
Finding the best solution
to meet energy growth demands –
Far North Coast.
The Lismore, Ballina
and Byron Shire areas
on the Far North Coast
of New South Wales
have seen significant
population growth over
the past decade, and
demand for electricity
supply increased by
25 per cent between
1995 and 2006.
With demand over the next 20 years expected to increase
by a further 50 per cent, we are proposing to upgrade
existing power-lines in the region from 66,000 volts to
132,000 volts to improve power reliability and capacity.
Country Energy’s proposed upgrade aims to ensure that
the electricity network is capable of meeting the needs
of a growing population and secure long-term electricity
supply to the region for future generations.
The upgrade would complete a network ring connecting
Mullumbimby, Ewingsdale, Ballina, Alstonville, East Lismore
and South Lismore.
Benefits of the upgrade include:
electricity demand in a region marked for growth as
major residential, employment and service centres
(energy lost in transmitting power along the powerline)
by 5,200 megawatt hours per annum – equivalent to
taking 1,000 cars off the road.
Complementing extensive independent environmental
reviews, a key component of the project has been
stakeholder and community consultation. A community
consultation plan has been carried out to ensure that all
stakeholders and the broader community are kept informed
of the project’s progress and are provided with adequate
opportunities to raise issues of interest.
Reliability performance
The Minister for Energy imposed licence conditions on
distribution network providers on 1 August 2005, covering
reliability and individual feeder standards. The conditions are
designed to give guidance to distributors on the performance
levels expected by the New South Wales Government.
Country Energy’s performance was again within these
standards for all feeder types and the year saw improvements
on all measures – reflecting lower levels of storm activity and
supply interruptions, and the effectiveness of our network
investment and maintenance programs.
System Average Interruption Duration Index
(SAIDI) – the average duration in minutes that
customers are without power.
SAIDI NDN
Feeder Class
Target minutes
off per customer
Performance
Urban 134 80
Rural Short 324 233
Rural Long 730 431
System Average Interruption Frequency Index
(SAIFI) – the average number of interruptions that
a customer experiences.
SAIFI NDN
Feeder Class
Target average
interruptions per
customer
Performance
Urban 1.92 1.21
Rural Short 3.18 2.42
Rural Long 4.8 3.5
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22 Finding better ways
A collaborative effort between lineworkers from different field service
centres to upgrade supply to a TV transmitter on the Hay Plain in
south western New South Wales.

Essential maintenance planning
Each year, we plan essential maintenance work across our nine regions
which includes inspections, refurbishments, installations and other
maintenance works. Our plans define work priorities and set clear goals
to meet reliability targets, customer expectations and quality standards.
Gas networks
The past year has seen continued growth in our gas networks business,
with an additional 590 new residential and commercial customers
choosing to use natural gas over other energy sources for heating,
hot water and cooking.
In mid 2007, our gas field employees joined with the Gas Networks group
to create an integrated team of planning, design and field experts and
achieve productivity and customer service improvements.
With the APA Group-owned transmission pipeline pressure between
Culcairn and Young doubling to 10,000kpa to cater for a new gas-fired
power station coming on line in 2009, Country Energy needs to install
heaters at various locations to prevent the gas freezing when it is brought
back down to distribution pressure for our customers.
In 2007–08, electric heaters were installed at Henty and Gundagai
and water bath heaters were installed at Wagga Wagga, Culcairn
and Wallendbeen.
During the year, several new customers commenced negotiations for
natural gas in the Wagga Wagga industrial estate at Bomen. New pipes
will need to be installed to meet these load requirements over the next
few years.
With around 1,000 kilometres of pipeline in our gas network to monitor
and maintain, we continued our ongoing pipeline replacement program
in 2007–08 by replacing a further 4.4 kilometres of ageing cast iron and
steel pipe with polyethylene pipe in Wagga Wagga township. This ongoing
replacement program will deliver improved system reliability and minimise
outages to customers.
During the year, we also replaced almost 2,000 meters that were over 15
years old as part of a multi-year program, in line with New South Wales
Government regulations.
We successfully passed annual audits on the Network Management
Plan for both distribution and transmission systems, ensuring that we’re
managing our systems in accordance with the Plan, meeting our licence
conditions, and delivering top service to our gas customers.
Emergency exercises were also carried out during the year to ensure
that all employees are prepared for any situation where there may be
a significant gas escape or damage to our gas network.
Asset maintenance program
Planned maintenance work includes pole and line inspections,
recloser installations, substation inspections and maintenance,
vegetation management and reconductoring. In 2007–08, over
20,000 substations were inspected and relevant maintenance
carried out, almost 1,200 kilometres of radial sub-transmission
lines were inspected and refurbished, and more than 362,000
pole and line assets were inspected.
This significant asset maintenance program ensures the lifespan
of existing infrastructure is maximised, reliability levels are enhanced
and the overall performance of the network is at its most efficient.
Heritage Asset Management Strategy (HAMS)
Further to our obligations under section 170 of the Heritage Act 1977,
Country Energy submitted our Heritage Asset Management Strategy
(HAMS) to the Heritage Branch of the NSW Department of Planning
for consideration.
Our HAMS document outlines the processes and timelines we are
following to ensure completion of a Heritage and Conservation Register
by the required due date – December 2009. The document is available
on the Country Energy website www.countryenergy.com.au/heritage.
Forecasting future network investment needs
Country Energy’s five-year regulatory proposal submitted to the Australian
Energy Regulator (AER) on 2 June 2008, set out the investment required
to maintain a network that can meet community growth while delivering
better reliability in the future.
One of Country Energy’s major undertakings for the year, the regulatory
proposal forecasts the future network investment needs required to
support Country Energy’s operation of Australia’s largest power network
across a vast and unique operating environment.
Country Energy’s five-year regulatory proposal looks to balance the
demands of customers for reliability and efficient pricing, while making
sure sufficient funds are available to continue investing in the future of
the network.
Overall, Country Energy is forecasting capital investment of $4 billion
and operating expenditure of $2.2 billion from July 2009 to June 2014.
Country Energy’s network investment proposals are designed to deliver
a reliable, affordable and sustainable essential service to our customers.
The Australian Energy Regulator will now assess our proposal.
Country Energy’s plans to invest $4 billion in improving the network is
about finding better ways to deliver the best service and value we can
to our customers.
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Finding better ways 23

REPUTABLE WATER SUPPLIER
Country Water is an operating division of Country Energy
that provides essential water supply and sewerage services to
more than 20,000 people.
Country Water is an operating division of Country Energy
that provides essential water supply services to more than
20,000 people in Broken Hill, Menindee, Sunset Strip and
Silverton in Far West New South Wales, and sewerage
services to premises in Broken Hill.
The area we service is the most arid in the state, with
extreme climatic variations and more frequent drought
than coastal areas.
In eight out of 10 years, town water supply has to be
sourced from the Darling River and pumped through
116 kilometres of pipeline to Broken Hill. These unique
operational circumstances, combined with drought
conditions, cause salinity and other water quality problems
and the raw water is treated in our Mica Street Treatment
Plant in Broken Hill prior to distribution.
As an end water user, we’re licensed to extract 10 gigalitres*
of water per year from the Menindee Lakes system on the
Darling River, and we manage three other water sources that
receive and store rainfall from the local catchment area:
(ML)**
*One gigalitre equals 1,000 million litres.
**One megalitre equals one million litres.
Year in review
During 2007–08, Country Water continued to build on the
achievements of previous years with a range of key water
and sewerage infrastructure investments and a number
of practical and affordable water saving initiatives for
both residents and businesses.
Our commitment to build and maintain strong community
partnerships and extensive community consultation has
helped drive a reduction of over 22 per cent in average daily
residential water consumption in the past two years.
Our customers can be assured that we run our operations
to the highest possible standards. This was reinforced
during the year with formal notification that Country Water’s
safety and environmental management systems meet the
certification standard of AS/NZS 4801:2001 and
AS/NZS 14001:2004. This includes the distribution of
water, retail activities, the management of assets and
network infrastructure in the Far West Region.
Key investments are being made in the water and sewerage
network to enhance water quality, supply security, environmental
compliance, water efficiency and sewage treatment.
Country Water’s continued investment in the water and
sewerage network is an investment in the future of the Broken
Hill community, enabling growth and development through the
delivery of essential water and sewerage services.
Stephens Creek also acts as a storage terminal for water
from the Menindee Lakes system, prior to it being pumped
to our Mica Street Treatment Plant.
The reservoirs supply between 30 and 90 per cent of local
annual water needs, depending on annual rainfall in the local
catchment area.
Water conservation is a vital part
of Country Water’s long-term water
management strategy, which aims
to make optimum use of existing
water resources.
Performance highlights
Achieved
No reportable environmental incidents for 2007–08 Achieved
Water efficiency programs delivered Achieved
Achieved
Zero Lost Time Injuries for 2007–08 Achieved
In the often harsh and arid environment of the state’s Country Water has been replacing sections of the
Far West, water is a precious resource. Sydney
pipeline that leads from the Umberumberka Reservoir
Home
receives, on average, five times the annual rainfall of (pictured) into Broken Hill, improving the safety and
24 Finding better ways Broken Hill.*Source Bureau of Meteorology.
reliability of water supply.
Finding better ways 25

REPUTABLE WATER SUPPLIER
Since Country Water commenced
operating in 2005, we’ve invested more than
$23 million in water and sewerage infrastructure.
Ensuring high quality drinking water
Country Water’s core business is to provide customers with
high quality, safe drinking water that is treated in line with
our Drinking Water Policy to meet the Australian Drinking
Water Guidelines.
A stringent regime of testing and quality assurance ensures
we meet these guidelines. The testing process includes
taking water samples from 38 locations, such as the
reservoirs, at the inlet and outlet of water filtration plants
and from various other locations throughout our water
network. Independent laboratories certified to the National
Association Testing Authority standards carry out all testing,
and the results are reviewed by NSW Health.
Each year we publish a summary of test results for samples
collected over the past 12 months, outlining health and
key aesthetic characteristics that have been selected in
consultation with NSW Health.
Improving water treatment, supply and security
Since Country Water commenced operating in 2005, we’ve
invested more than $23 million in water and sewerage
infrastructure. In 2007–08, the following projects were
undertaken to further improve water supply, treatment
and security:
Mica Street Water Treatment Plant
A detailed external review of our existing water treatment
plant identified that more modern processes are required
to adequately treat periodic poor water quality. The review
recommended constructing a new water treatment plant to
meet water safety and reliability standards into the future.
During the year, we undertook an extensive tender process
to select a partner to design and construct the new plant.
We aim to commence the initial design and construction
phase in 2008–09.
Rocla pipeline replacement
The Rocla pipeline between Stephens Creek and Broken Hill
is the only permanent water supply main for Broken Hill. In
mid 2008, we replaced around 2.5 kilometres of pipeline –
at a cost of $2.25 million – to ensure security of water supply.
Broken Hill mains replacement
A $1.5 million mains replacement project in south Broken
Hill, focused on improving quality and reliability of drinking
water supply, commenced in October 2006 and is planned
for completion towards the end of 2008.
Five new employees started with this project, which has
provided an opportunity for new employees, apprentices
and trainees to take part in a unique training experience
completing a major mains replacement project.
Warren Street Sewage Pumping Station upgrade
The Warren Street Sewage Pumping Station is Broken Hill’s
largest sewer pumping station. Originally installed in the
1940s, it is being upgraded to ensure continued protection
of public health, the environment and employees’ safety
during scheduled maintenance, and to cater for future growth
in Broken Hill.
Since the project commenced in August 2006, a new main
pipeline has been installed at the pumping station and three
smaller pumping stations have been installed and linked via
a distribution chamber. The major portion of this $500,000
upgrade was completed in 2007–08.
Business partnerships to save water
We work closely with our commercial customers to
support their initiatives to conserve water and achieve
cost efficiencies.
During the year, we provided cash and in-kind support to
help Broken Hill Football League Limited save water at the
town’s largest sporting oval by installing an irrigation system
with timers, moisture sensors and evaporation controls.
This project is anticipated to save around 4,600,000 litres
of water each year.
We also worked closely with Broken Hill City Council, through
Broken Hill Tourism, to distribute new water saving shower
hangers to all accommodation businesses in Broken Hill.
The hanger was designed to encourage all visitors to shorten
their shower time by three minutes, which could save around
21,000 litres of water a year per person.
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26 Finding better ways

Reusing waste water
More than 55 per cent of treated effluent from Country Water’s two
sewage treatment plants was reused by eight customers during the year
to supplement their treated water usage.
The customers use the water mainly for agricultural purposes, under
stringent effluent management agreements in consultation with Country
Water. These agreements detail the use of effluent water and associated
sampling, surface water controls and nutrient and salt balance
calculations required by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).
Treated effluent can safely replace drinking quality water for a range of
useful purposes.
Minimising water losses
In November 2007, Country Water completed an extensive review of
end-to-end water system losses.
The review assessed Broken Hill’s urban system losses at 9.1 per cent.
While this is acceptable by International Standards, we’re implementing
a number of targeted programs to improve this, including:
problem areas and enable targeted mains replacement programs
Building the skills of our water employees
Country Energy employs six apprentices and water and sewer trainees
in the Broken Hill water business, boosting local jobs growth and career
opportunities and helping Country Water strengthen our field crews,
improve service levels and meet customers’ needs well into the future.
Our apprentices and water trainees will complete on the job training
working with Country Energy’s water management team, and regularly
attend TAFE or undertake course work to fulfil off the job training
requirements.
Broken Hill City
Council –
saving 300,000,000
litres of water
As a large water user with numerous sites
and facilities, Broken Hill City Council has
joined with Country Water to review, analyse
and reduce its water usage. Council has
commenced a number of water efficiency
projects in 2007–08, including:
amenities in the CBD. This will save 292,000
litres per year
irrigation at the O’Neill Soccer Ovals, and
replacing water pipe used to carry untreated
water for irrigation at the Tennis Association
facilities. This will save 7,774,200 litres of
water per year
and associated drainage, plumbing and/or
irrigation infrastructure. This will save
1,700,000 litres per year
Keast Park. This will save 1,500,000 litres of
water per year.
H 2
Overhaul Program
More than
200,000,000 litres
of water saved
More than 2,000
customers assisted
The H 2
Overhaul Program offers customers
practical water efficiency improvements by
providing qualified plumbers to fix leaking
taps, install flow restrictors and three star
rated showerheads, cistern weights and
energy efficient light globes. Customers
receive up to $240 worth of water saving
improvements for only $40, and the program
is free for eligible pensioners.
Around 1,700 customers – or more than 17
per cent – of all residential customers have
benefited from the program, with:
million litres of water saved)
including showerheads, flow regulators,
cistern weights (estimated up to 100 million
litres of water saved).
More than 67 per cent of these customers are
pensioners who received the retrofit program
for free, helping them save water and money.
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27

SUCCESSFUL NATIONAL RETAILER
Country Energy is a national energy retailer
offering a broad range of competitive products,
offers and value-added services.
“It’s easy to sleep at night knowing
that we have done our little bit
to help the environment, and the
best bit is that we have reduced
our energy bill by 30 per cent!”
Country Energy’s retail operations cover six Australian states
and territories, and we serve around 870,000 customers.
Our product range includes competitive energy offers,
renewable energy, ADSL broadband and dial-up internet
services, LPG, energy and water management solutions and
value-added services such as energy efficiency advice and
flexible payment options.
We operate in a competitive market environment and, as a
commercial business, we seek to make offers to customers
that provide us with a sustainable return and our customers
with value for money.
Year in review
Our retail operations maintained our market position
during the year, achieving growth in our total load portfolio,
successfully entering a new geographic market and recording
significant growth in countrygreen® customers.
Our success in providing excellent customer service can
be seen in results from independent market research
conducted during the year, which confirm Country Energy
as an industry leader.
Performance highlights
portfolio of more than 30 per cent
per cent of the load in the State
48,000
proportion of satisfied customers than any other major
energy retailers*.
* Wave 12 of the Utility Market Intelligence research (2007)
Customer growth and retention
Despite challenging, high cost energy market conditions,
we managed to achieve over 30 per cent growth in our
total contracted commercial and industrial load portfolio
by focusing our efforts on tailoring offers to customers to
reflect market conditions.
We retained and continued to manage a range of high profile
customers including Commonwealth Scientific Industrial
Research Organisation (CSIRO), Sydney Markets Limited
and National Australia Bank.
We continued to expand our customer base, securing
contracts with companies such as Sims Aluminium Pty
Limited, RMIT University, and Joe White Maltings, and
expanding into new geographical markets. For the first time,
we entered into Electricity Supply Agreements with customers
in Tasmania and acquired over 10 per cent of the state’s
load. We were also issued with natural gas retail licences
in Tasmania and South Australia. As a result, Country Energy
now operates in six Australian states and territories.
countrygreen® product improvements
Country Energy offers our customers GreenPower products
that are accredited through the National GreenPower
Accreditation Program.
In September 2007, Country Energy responded to customer
demand with a new range of fully accredited GreenPower
products. The residential product range comprises four
core products:
The range of countrygreen®products for businesses was
extended to include a 100 per cent accredited consumption
based product. The product range for businesses now
comprises:
Strong take-up of these products by the small business
community in 2007–08 reflects growing customer
commitment to reducing energy consumption and helping
the environment.
Overall, customer take-up of GreenPower products has
increased strongly over the past year with around 48,000
customers now choosing GreenPower – representing a year
on year growth rate of around 60 per cent.
Country Energy again took part in the annual Green
Electricity Watch and Choice surveys, ranking highly in both
surveys and receiving praise for our transparent approach to
our product range and removal of non-accredited GreenPower
product options. These surveys are often used by customers
when comparing GreenPower products, and this year’s results
further cement our place as a reputable GreenPower retailer.
John and Aileen Brooks have been Country Energy
foreverGREEN customers since November 2006,
Home
and in that time they have reduced their energy
28 Finding better ways consumption significantly.
Finding better ways 29

SUCCESSFUL NATIONAL RETAILER
We’re continuing to improve Bright Ideas
to give practical and tangible energy consumption advice to
households and communities.
Bright Ideas
Our Bright Ideas campaign continued to help customers
reduce their energy consumption and associated impacts
on the environment in 2007–08, providing tips for people
to adopt when using power in their homes.
We’re continuing to improve Bright Ideas to give practical
and tangible energy consumption advice to households
and communities across the Country Energy footprint area.
This year, we helped customers take a proactive approach
to understanding their energy consumption using our
online energy efficiency calculator. Demonstration versions
were made available at community events and field days
to complement the energy saving tips already provided by
Bright Ideas.
We also made our paper based Energy Wise Guide booklet
available online, giving customers more tools for assessing
the running costs of various appliances and providing energy
saving tips they can use around the home.
Earth Hour, held in March 2008, led Country Energy to
promote Bright Ideas on how a community can reduce
collective consumption if community members follow
a number of simple energy saving steps.
Energy and Water Management Survey
Country Energy continues to support local councils across
New South Wales with their energy and water management
initiatives by commissioning an annual Energy and Water
Management Survey. The survey enables councils to
benchmark their performance against other councils and
track their progress annually. Participating in the 2008
survey were 77 New South Wales local government councils,
with results expected to be made available in late 2008.
The Country Energy and Water Management Award, an
outcome of the survey, is presented to an outstanding
council that has adopted a holistic approach to energy and
water management and is recognised as a benchmark for
resource management programs and measures to reduce
costs and greenhouse gas emissions. The 2007 award
was presented to Hornsby Council for their industry leading
approach to sustainable business operations.
CEinternet
CEinternet continued to consolidate its position this year
as a trusted and reliable provider of dial-up, ADSL broadband
and business internet services across the Country Energy
footprint and throughout Australia. Renegotiations with
upstream providers during 2007–08 have enabled us to
further develop competitive internet products and services.
This year, Country Energy:
charges
customer email accounts
activation CDs and online channels.
Flexible payment options
Country Energy offers customers the flexibility and
convenience of accessing their bills via E-Bill and energy.web
and making bill payments via direct debit and EasyPay.
Through EasyPay we average out a customer’s annual energy
usage to diminish the peaks that typically occur during
summer and winter, helping customers with their cash flow
and household budgeting throughout the year.
This year, customers have provided positive feedback on
both the range and flexibility of the methods available to
make payments.
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30 Finding better ways

Saving money the natural gas way
Australian Pavement Maintenance Systems (APMS) is an Australian
success story. For more than 10 years they have been maintaining
asphalt and concrete pavements on state and federal highways,
airports and sporting stadiums, both in Australia and internationally.
Understandably, their line of work relies heavily on energy resources,
so minimising their costs and energy consumption are key priorities
for the management team.
In September 2006, APMS converted their asphalt plant from diesel
to natural gas, based on the advice given to them by Country Energy.
Before the conversion, the company was spending $24,000 per month
on burner fuel (diesel) for their asphalt plant.
Following the introduction of natural gas, the average monthly cost
dropped to $8,600 which was a massive 64 per cent reduction. In fact,
over the first 12 months of operation with natural gas, the company
saved $192,000 in production costs solely due to the use of natural gas.
An improvement in their bottom line wasn’t the only way the
company benefited.
“From a productivity perspective, we have seen a secondary benefit in
the use of natural gas,” said Matthew Ferris, Production Manager, APMS.
“Our plant is rated at 80 tonnes per hour, however, our actual production,
rates were averaging 50–55 tonnes per hour. This reduced productivity
could be attributed to a number of factors, not the least of which was
a reduction in the efficiency of our dust extraction system.
“The introduction of natural gas has completely eliminated the problems
we had, and we have seen an increase in production rates from 50–55
tonnes per hour to 60–65 tonnes per hour. This may not sound like
much, but when we have crews costing thousands of dollars per
hour waiting on site for asphalt to be delivered, a small saving at the
manufacturing plant translates to a large saving on site,” said Matthew.
Energy savers
John and Aileen Brooks have been Country Energy foreverGREEN
customers since November 2006, and in that time they have reduced
their energy consumption significantly.
And, of course, by reducing their energy consumption, they’ve also
reduced carbon emissions. Here’s how they did it:
aren’t using energy to boil water they aren’t going to use
keep it out in summer and reduce the need for heating and cooling
(John used merino wool insulation)
prevent drafts.
Country Energy Account Manager Duncan Butler (left) on site with customer
Matthew Ferris, Production Manager with APMS.
“From a productivity
perspective, we have
seen a secondary
benefit in the use
of natural gas.”
Matthew Ferris,
Production Manager,
APMS.
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Finding better ways 31

PROMOTED BY CUSTOMERS
Our aim is to deliver excellent customer service
at all times, showing our customers that they can
depend on us.
Cindy McGeorge is
Country Energy’s
most remotely based
meter reader.
“When I’m planning
a run to the remote
stations I’ll call
ahead and ask if
they’d like me to
bring anything; they
appreciate that.”
We succeed in creating satisfied and loyal customers through
all our employees working together and committing to:
customers with a positive view of the experience
their fingertips
unintentionally caused
our people
solution
Year in review
We’ve had an outstanding year of customer service,
exceeding all our performance measures and delivering
the warm, friendly and efficient service our customers have
come to expect.
Our success has been recognised by our customers, whose
strong support resulted in our Customer Net Promoter Score
for 2007–08 being 11 per cent above target. This result
places us among the top organisations in Australia with a
proven record in maintaining the highest levels of customer
satisfaction and corporate reputation.
Our achievements have also been recognised by the Customer
Service Institute of Australia, which awarded us International
Customer Service Standard ICSS: 2003-2006 Certification.
Performance highlights
Our Contact Centre answered 83 per cent of phone calls
on our general enquiries line, 13 23 56, within 30 seconds
– exceeding our target of 80 per cent.
Our frontline staff resolved 97 per cent of enquiries on the
first call or contact – exceeding our target of 95 per cent.
Our Customer Net Promoter Score was 26 per cent,
strongly ahead of the target of 15 per cent.
Country Energy’s Customer Service division was awarded
the International Customer Service Standard ICSS:
2003–2006 Certification by the Customer Service Institute
of Australia.
We resolved 95.3 per cent of domestic customer
complaints within four days – well over our target of 85
per cent. The average days taken to resolve all customer
complaints was 1.28, down from 3.76 days in 2006–07
and well under our target of four days.
We undertook a comprehensive redesign of our website
– www.countryenergy.com.au – to improve ease of use,
launching the new look site in the second half of the year.
Rewarding and recognising great customer service
Country Energy recognises that excellent customer service
is a fundamental part of enabling our business to become
Australia’s best essential services provider.
To support our established customer service excellence
strategy, we launched the make them a fan! reward and
recognition program across all business areas in 2007.
The program challenges employees to step up and make
our internal and external customers fans by actively living
our eight commitment statements.
This year more than 1,800 – or 43 per cent – of employees
were nominated for make them a fan! points. We received
a total 3,666 nominations – 12 per cent more than our
target, highlighting that many of our employees repeatedly
provide first class customer service. Given the enthusiasm
with which it’s been embraced, the reward and recognition
program will continue in the new financial year, with an
ongoing focus on recognising co-workers who are stepping
up or finding better ways to make our customers fans.
Cindy’s Tibooburra meter reading route takes in almost
3,000 kilometres of gravel roads and sandy tracks in
32 Finding better ways over six days.
Finding better ways 33
Home

PROMOTED BY CUSTOMERS
Encouraging suggestions and ideas
An email address – whatsnotgoodenough@countryenergy.
com.au – established as part of the make them a fan!
program provides a communication channel through which
employees can send suggestions or ideas for changing how
we do business to improve delivery of internal and external
customer service.
A review of business processes with whole-of-business
impacts, together with inroads made by business units
to improve service levels, resulted in a reduction in the
number of emails received – from 242 in 2006–07 to 191 in
2007–08. This outstanding result is 33 per cent above target.
Demonstrating customer service excellence
Following a successful audit in November 2007, Country
Energy’s customer service division has been awarded the
International Customer Service Standard ICSS: 2003–2006
Certification by the Customer Service Institute of Australia.
The Standard reflects a number of elements that comprise
a world-class customer service management system and
establishes benchmarks for service excellence in line with
international best practice. By becoming a certified customer
service organisation, Country Energy demonstrates customer
service excellence.
A recertification assessment is conducted on an annual
basis, to ensure Country Energy remains compliant with
the Standard.
Measuring customer satisfaction
We use customer satisfaction surveys to ensure we have a
clear understanding of our customers’ perception of Country
Energy. The surveys are conducted monthly and provide
insights into our performance across operations, service
and communications.
A key measure for Country Energy is the Net Promoter Score,
which measures how likely our customers are to recommend
Country Energy to family and friends and is widely used by
organisations across a number of industry sectors to provide
performance benchmarking.
Our Customer Net Promoter Score for 2007–08 was
26 per cent, strongly ahead of the target of 15 per cent.
This outstanding result is testimony to the strong drive
throughout the business to provide the highest levels of
customer service and satisfaction and reinforce our solid
corporate reputation.
This high level of customer satisfaction is driven by Country
Energy’s frontline employees. Our Contact Centre answered
83 per cent of phone calls on our general enquiries line
13 23 56 within 30 seconds – exceeding our target of
80 per cent. Our frontline employees also resolved 97 per
cent of enquiries on the first call or contact – exceeding our
target of 95 per cent.
These results demonstrate our focus on ensuring that
customers receive efficient and prompt service, and that
customers find Country Energy easy to do business with.
Resolving customer complaints
Country Energy has a dedicated Customer Affairs team
which manages customer complaints. All customer issues
are treated seriously and professionally and the team places
a strong emphasis on thorough and timely issues resolution.
The average time taken to resolve customer complaints
was 1.28 days, down from 3.76 days in 2006–07 and well
under the target of four days. We resolved 95.3 per cent of
domestic complaints within four days – strongly exceeding
our target of 85 per cent.
Officers from the Energy and Water Ombudsman of NSW are shown around Casella Wines
operations in Griffith, one of Country Energy’s key commercial customers.
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34 Finding better ways

Energy and Water Ombudsman of New South Wales (EWON)
The success of our efforts to provide good customer service by seeking
ways to assist our customers in resolving issues or complaints when
they first contact us, is evident in the small number of customers who
esculated their complaint to EWON.
Only 6.6 per cent of all consultations dealt with by EWON related to
Country Energy, well under our estimated New South Wales market share.
Guaranteed levels of service
Our Guaranteed Customer Service Standards (GCSS) detail the standards
we will meet in the delivery of services to our customers. If we don’t
meet set standards we make a payment to affected eligible customers.
However, Country Energy works proactively to resolve issues that impact
on our ability to meet our GCSS, constantly striving to improve our
customer service delivery.
During the year, we paid only six claims for supply reliability and outage
duration GCSS, demonstrating our efforts in this area.
Country Energy website
Our website, www.countryenergy.com.au, was comprehensively
redeveloped in 2007–08 to introduce better navigation to the range
of useful features within the site and boost overall usability.
We’ve identified and enhanced the information that visitors value
and improved the pages that people regularly visit – like our popular
StormTracker page and energy efficiency calculator.
We’ve also developed other areas of the site that give customers easy
self-service for day-to-day requests, like checking their energy usage.
Our site now has a Green Energy section devoted to renewable energy
– our range of accredited GreenPower products – and an outline of our
environmental initiatives and achievements.
Since the site was redeveloped we’ve received excellent customer
feedback and site usage statistics are trending upwards.
Price changes
On 1 July 2008, Country Energy introduced new prices for our regulated
retail electricity customers with natural gas customers price change
effective from 1 June 2008. Retail prices are regulated by the New South
Wales Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) for those
residential and small business customers that choose not to enter the
contestable market.
A water and sewerage price change applied from 1 July 2008, in line
with Best Practice Pricing Guidelines set by the New South Wales
Government. These prices were approved by the New South Wales
Minister for Water Utilities.
Customer communications
Countryways is a quarterly newsletter distributed by Country Energy
in 2007–08 containing news and advice, including energy saving tips,
community news and events, and information on our competitions and
promotions. We distributed the newsletter with our customer accounts
to customers within our network area and to retail customers in Victoria,
South Australia, Australian Capital Territory and metropolitan New
South Wales.
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Finding better ways 35

VALUED COMMUNITY MEMBER
Country Energy is committed to making a positive difference
to the communities where our business operates and our people
live and work.
Country Energy supports
local communities as part of
our commitment to regional
investment and corporate
social responsibility.
We demonstrate our commitment to these communities
through sponsorships, community partnership programs
and in-kind work, creating apprenticeships and regional
employment opportunities, forging closer relationships
with regional stakeholders and delivering safe and reliable
essential energy services.
Year in review
(Left) Monaro Mobile Library – allows visitors to connect
to a whole new world of information through the
internet, in locations across the Bombala, Cooma-
Monaro and Snowy River areas.
(Top right) Country Energy launched its Indigenous
Employment and Development Strategy in conjunction
with the 50th anniversary of National Aborigines
and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC)
celebrations in Tweed Heads in July 2007.
In 2007–08 we helped a broad range of regional events
remain viable through our sponsorship support, and provided
local employment and long-term career opportunities for
young people in regional communities through the creation
of apprenticeships, traineeships and cadetships.
During challenging economic times – particularly in those
areas suffering ongoing drought conditions – we continued
to assist customers experiencing financial hardship through
our Country Support program.
Our success can be seen in the results of our Community
Stakeholder Net Promoter Score, which exceeded our target
by 11 per cent, but the real reward comes from knowing
that we’ve contributed in material ways to the ongoing
sustainability of the communities in which we work and live.
Performance highlights
We provided rural and regional communities with around
$1.5 million through sponsorships and community
partnership programs.
We achieved a Community Stakeholder Net Promoter Score
of 26 per cent, exceeding our target of 15 per cent.
We maintained extensive stakeholder and community
consultation through meetings held with our Customer
Council, Rural Advisory Group and Regional Advisory Boards.
We continued to provide assistance to customers
experiencing financial hardship through Country Support.
Investing in the life of regional communities
Country Energy supports community sponsorship as part
of our commitment to regional investment and corporate
social responsibility.
Environmental, social, educational and cultural events and
organisations – in particular, non-profit groups involved in
community support, development and improvement projects
– benefit from our sponsorship program.
And because our employees live, and are vital links, in the
social and economic networks of these communities, Country
Energy benefits from promoting the unique aspects of their
towns, people and culture, and assisting in areas of need.
In 2007–08, our investment was around $1.5 million and
included several state-wide initiatives.
The $35,000 Country Energy Art Prize for
Landscape Painting
Now in its sixth year, the prize is Australia’s richest annual
landscape art prize, attracting entries from first time entrants
and previous Archibald Prize and Blake Prize winners.
For the first time, the 2007 Art Prize was a non-acquisitive
prize, allowing the winning artist to keep or sell their
own work and still receive a significant monetary prize.
The Art Prize recognises the depth of artistic talent in
country communities as well as celebrating our distinctive
landscapes.
New South Wales Premier’s Country Energy Indigenous
Education Scholarship
This scholarship provides for the study of aspects of
Indigenous education relevant to the New South Wales
curriculum. Our support complements our award winning
Indigenous Employment Program, which provides long-term
career opportunities in country and coastal communities.
Keep Australia Beautiful
Country Energy has supported a range of Keep Australia
Beautiful Tidy Towns initiatives over a number of years.
In 2007–08, we were proud to be the major sponsor of
the Energy Innovation Award category, which encourages,
promotes and recognises groups and organisations which
actively reduce their energy consumption across all activities.
Cancer Council Financial Assistance Grant
Country Energy provides funding for the Cancer Council
Financial Assistance Grant, which is designed to assist
people with cancer who are facing substantial hardship.
The funds contributed by Country Energy are used to benefit
patients within the Country Energy network area.
(Bottom right) During a public open day at Nymboida
Hydro Electric Power Station, Country Energy
Home
announced a $6 million pipeline refurbishment project
36 Finding better ways that will secure Grafton’s water supply.
Finding better ways 37

VALUED COMMUNITY MEMBER
Country Energy is committed
to investing in regional sponsorships
and partnerships.
South Eastern
Monaro Mobile Library – allows visitors to connect to a whole
new world of information through the internet, in locations
across the Bombala, Cooma-Monaro and Snowy River areas.
The Mobile Library travels around 1,500 kilometres each
fortnight, stopping at rural towns and villages in the area to
enable members of communities to connect to the internet
from the computers in the Mobile Library.
Murrumbateman Field Days – held over two days, the event
includes markets, agricultural products, arts and crafts
from local businesses and attracts around 12,000 people.
Country Energy has been a major sponsor and exhibitor
for many years.
Far West
Homebush Field Day in Balranald and AgFair in Broken Hill
– two significant regional events that attract rural and city
people to the area. Country Energy has a strong presence
at both events, providing energy information and advice and
an opportunity for community members across the Far West
Region to discuss their energy needs with us face to face.
Former Balranald Customer Service Centre building –
provided by Country Energy to the Balranald community for
nominal rent for use by non-profit community organisations
such as Can Assist (Cancer Patient Assistance Society
of NSW Balranald Branch) and the Balranald Bulletin
(a community publication).
South Western
Country Energy Hillston Lions ‘Australiana’ Bush Festival –
a biannual event that draws visitors to the Hillston area and
showcases the Shire’s attractions. As naming rights sponsor,
we provide financial support and also participate in the event
on the day providing information, promotional material and
fun packs for children. The event has won awards, including
the Australia Day Award for Community Event of the Year,
and continues to bring a positive influence to an area that
is experiencing hardship as a result of the drought.
Leeton/Narrandera Lynks Program – a workplace based
learning program for Year 10 students who want to
acquire a trade, or work in retail, hospitality or business
administration. Students are provided with life and work
skills together with nationally accredited training. Country
Energy provides financial support and in 2007 more than
80 Year 10 students were able to gain work placements,
addressing the current shortage of regional skilled labour
in the region.
Central Western
Elvis Festival Parkes – a fun, family-oriented event that
attracts more than 10,000 visitors to Parkes each year.
Country Energy is a major sponsor and, because it’s held
in January – the hottest month of the year – we offer water
and sunscreen to all visitors, as well as face painting to
young Elvis fans.
Australian National Field Days – help us reach out to regional
rural farmers, their families and schools to promote Country
Energy’s products and services. People travel from all over
New South Wales to visit the field days. Country Energy
promotes cooking demonstrations, energy efficiency advice
and energy use demonstrations through the Energy Bike
Challenge, and expert teams on hand to provide information
on all aspects of our business.
Riverina
Henty Field Days – is a massive outdoor market showcasing
leading-edge agricultural products and services from
businesses across southern New South Wales. The Henty
Machinery Field Days provide Country Energy with the
opportunity to showcase our products and services to
around 52,000 people over three days.
Wagga Wagga Christmas Spectacular is a community event
attracting 8,000 people to share in the celebration of
Christmas. Proceeds raised from the event benefit Kurrajong
Waratah. a non-profit organisation servicing the Riverina-
Murray region, to assist their work providing services and
support to over 500 people in the region with disabilities.
Far North Coast
Country Energy Casino Beef Week – this significant event
in the Richmond Valley brings the entire community together
and promotes agricultural excellence. It provides an
opportunity for us to demonstrate our support for the region
and its communities and to increase awareness of our
business through a range of education materials. This year’s
revitalised event, with Country Energy as major sponsor,
was a resounding success and we have now committed
to sponsorship of Beef Week for the next three years.
Wilsons Creek Huonbrook Landcare Group – is undertaking
a five-year pilot project of restorative work in a high
conservation area powerline easement to the west of
Mullumbimby. The aim of the project is to develop it as
a model of vegetation management excellence. Country
Energy provided funding to support removal of weeds and
unsuitable tree species and replanting of appropriate native
rainforest species.
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38 Finding better ways

Mid North Coast
Tocal and Macksville Field Days – provide us with an opportunity to
meet our customers, demonstrate what Country Energy does and respond
to their enquiries – it’s a great way to connect with our customers.
Country Energy has formed partnerships with two communities in the
Lower Hunter region, Gresford and Vacy, to improve local amenities.
We upgraded the lighting at the Gresford showground to enable extra
events to be run and bring more people to the area. In consultation with
the Vacy community, we replaced unsuitable vegetation growing adjacent
to powerlines in the Vacy Memorial Park with more appropriate species
to promote public safety and network reliability – and increase the
visual amenity.
Northern
Greater Northern Skills Development Group – formed to promote skills
development and training for industries and communities throughout
the region, the group conducts annual Regional Training Awards and is
actively involved in improving vocational education and training. As a
major sponsor, Country Energy supports the group by providing business
skills, experience and advice.
NIAS ‘Energise’ Sports Science Program – previously, talented athletes
from across the region under the Northern Inland Academy of Sport’s
numerous programs had to travel to Sydney for important fitness and
ability testing. Through Country Energy’s ‘Energise’ program, this critical
performance element can now be carried out within the region and
provides ongoing development for the athletes and coaches.
North Western
Community Development Employment Program (CDEP) – assists
Indigenous people to gain work experience and entry into the workforce.
Mudgee Small Farm Field Days – are a highlight of the North Western
region’s calendar, injecting over $5 million into the area and attracting
around 30,000 people annually. Country Energy has sponsored this event
for the last 10 years, and our support has ensured the event continues
to grow and promote rural and regional industries.
Measuring stakeholder satisfaction
The Community Stakeholder Net Promoter Score measures how
likely stakeholders such as local councils, mayors, media, industry
associations and business groups are to recommend us to other
organisations.
The Net Promoter Score is widely used by a range of organisations
across a number of industry sectors and provides excellent performance
benchmarking.
Our Community Stakeholder Net Promoter Score for 2007–08 was
26 per cent, substantially exceeding our target of 15 per cent. This result
places us among the leading Australian organisations with the highest
levels of stakeholder satisfaction and corporate reputation.
Consulting with customers and their communities
Rural Advisory Group
When Country Energy formed we established a Rural Advisory Group
(RAG) to maintain close connections with communities across our
network footprint to act as a vehicle in giving rural and remote customers
a voice. There is no formal legislative requirement to have this forum –
we’ve chosen to form this unique group to gather feedback and identify
issues affecting our regional customers.
The group comprises 11 members from across the state’s rural sector,
including cotton farmers and irrigators, crop and grain growers, wool and
primary producers, rural health and the Country Women’s Association.
We aim to ensure that equal consideration and opportunity for feedback
is given to all customer issues by choosing members who live and work in
different geographic and demographic areas and who are representative
of, and respected within, their communities.
The group meets quarterly at different locations across our footprint
and in 2007–08 met in Buronga, Dubbo, Tamworth and Lightning Ridge.
They receive presentations from Country Energy’s senior management
on topical issues and act as a sounding board for upcoming decision
making on company direction. Group members use the meetings as
an opportunity to present back to the business on current issues and
challenges facing the customers and locations they represent.
The group has initiated and driven many successful customer and
community solutions, such as time stamping on our Interactive Voice
Response (IVR) messaging, a direct result and recommendation of
input and advice received from the meetings.
Country Energy is among
Australia’s leading organisations
with the highest levels of
stakeholder satisfaction and
corporate reputation.
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Finding better ways 39

VALUED COMMUNITY MEMBER
Customer Council
A requirement of the NSW Government, Country Energy’s
Customer Council represents the social demographics and
issues of our customer base.
Providing advice and information, as well as a forum for
consultation between small retail customers and Country
Energy, the Customer Council operates under the Country
Energy Customer Council Charter, playing an important
advisory role in representing the diversity of Country Energy’s
customers across regional and rural New South Wales.
The five members meet quarterly in various locations across
our network to view issues associated with the communities
and regions they visit first-hand. Each meeting focuses on
a different division of the business, ensuring the Council
is updated on changes within the organisation and, in turn,
the Council presents back to the businesses on topical
community issues.
Regional Advisory Boards
Within Country Energy’s community consultation structure,
there are nine advisory boards central to each region. Our
Regional Advisory Boards meet with regional management
on a quarterly basis to discuss issues specific to their
designated areas while receiving updates on our business.
Industry-leading hardship program –
Country Support
Country Energy’s Country Support program, available for
customers experiencing financial hardship, has assisted
more than 9,500 families, farmers and businesses since it
was introduced in 2002 to manage their ongoing electricity
consumptions and costs.
The program is based on the principles of respect,
confidentiality and flexibility, and providing the best possible
service to our customers.
While drought and other economic factors continued to cause
financial hardship in many regional areas this year, we
continued to maintain low disconnections for non-payment –
4,652 for the 2007–08 year.
Country Support remains the only industry based hardship
program accredited by the NSW Department of Water
and Energy (DWE) to distribute Energy Account Payment
Assistance (EAPA) vouchers. In 2007–08, Country Support
distributed $50,000 in EAPA vouchers to over 500
customers across the state. Our Country Support officers
also work directly with Community Welfare Organisations
such as St Vincent De Paul and the Salvation Army, which
provide a conduit between customers in need and our
assistance programs – strong partnerships that provide
good customer service and support in rural communities.
Ethnic Affairs Priority Statement (EAPS)
Country Energy is committed to meeting the needs of our
diverse customer and employee base. During 2007–08 we
continued to deliver a range of products and services to
support our customers and the wider community, as well
as a range of initiatives for employees.
Key EAPS programs include:
Italian, Greek and Spanish customers to contact Country
Energy on 13 14 50
Country Support, our financial hardship program, offers
advice and payment methods to assist customers from
all backgrounds in managing their energy consumption
and developing financial skills to enable independent
management in the future
Centrelink benefits allows low income customers to better
manage their funds
ethnically diverse backgrounds
Employment Strategy
Manager Employment Equity and Diversity – to support
and promote the ideals of equity and diversity within
the workplace
of views and issues through Customer Council, Regional
Advisory Board and Rural Advisory Group meetings.
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40 Finding better ways
Country Energy field crews from Goulburn played a vital role when
the Big Merino was moved to a new location.

Corporate responsibility
Corporate responsibility can be defined as the management of a
company’s positive impact on society and the environment through its
operations, products or services and through its interaction with key
stakeholders such as employees, customers, investors, communities
and suppliers.
We’re committed to achieving excellence in this area, and recognise our
current and future responsibilities.
In 2007, we again participated in the Corporate Responsibility Index (CRI)
program conducted by the St James Ethics Centre and its partners. The
CRI is a proven business tool and assists us to identify non-financial risk,
as well as develop and improve corporate responsibility in line with our
business strategy.
Other benefits it provides include a framework for integrating corporate
responsibility, a systematic and transparent approach to reporting, gap
analysis for management, and increased trust in the organisation.
Employees who are faced with ethical issues can also use the
Ethi-Call service available from the St James Ethics Centre. This provides
specialist support while protecting the anonymity of the caller.
Our focus on improvement in this area was recognised with the Best
Progress Award in the 2007 CRI, building on the Best Newcomer Award
achieved in 2006. We remain dedicated to even better performance in
the future and making corporate responsibility a key part of the way we
do business.
Recruiting apprentices across the state
In 2007–08, Country Energy created 117 apprenticeship positions with
recruits coming from every region in the state. We have a commitment
and a presence in the communities we service through our decentralised
regional management structure. This makes us one of Australia’s strongest
regional businesses as well as being responsive to local priorities.
Country Energy Apprentice Recruitment 2007–08
Region/Business Unit 07–08
Intake
Central West Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 9
Far North Coast Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 14
Far West Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 3
Mid North Coast Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 15
Northern Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 14
CIII Electrotechnology Systems Electrician
1
Riverina Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 12
North Western Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 15
Certificate III Electrotechnology Systems Electrician
1
South Western Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 11
South Eastern Region
Certificate III (Distribution) Lineworker/CIII ESI Cable Jointer 9
Country Water
Certificate III Boilermaker
1
Certificate III Electrotechnology Systems Electrician
1
Networks
Certificate III Electrotechnology Systems Electrician
11*
*Located within various regions.
16
15
14
5
15
9
11
12
9
Colin Banwell, meter reader from Tumut, and wife Bonnie were recognised for their
tireless work within the local community, both receiving Citizen of the Year awards.
Home
Finding better ways 41

“We need around 10,000 power
poles each year. Surely growing our
own has to be a better way.”
AN ENVIRONMENTAL LEADER
As a responsible corporate citizen,
we have an obligation to minimise the environmental
impact of our operations.
Our aim is to integrate environmentally sustainable
management into everything we do by:
environmental impacts arising from our activities, products
and services
standards, codes and licences which relate to our
environmental aspects
trained and have the knowledge and skills they need to
undertake their work in an environmentally responsible
manner
environment policies, procedures and other requirements
about environmental issues
implementing preventative actions
our significant environmental aspects to continually review
and improve our environmental performance
sources to address the impacts of electricity generation.
Year in review
This year, we took a first step in understanding our total
carbon footprint through a major audit of our greenhouse gas
emissions. The results will provide a base line for how we
address carbon reduction across our operations in the future.
The Environmental Management System (EMS) we use
to manage our operational impacts was also audited and
certification to AS/NZS ISO 14001 was maintained. This
Standard is a driver for environmental improvement in all
areas, including air emissions and carbon reduction.
We achieved an environmental compliance rate of 96.8 per
cent, measured through a record number of environmental
audits conducted across all areas of the business during
2007–08.
We also took a first step towards making our network
operations more environmentally sustainable, commencing
planning and construction of an ‘intelligent’ electricity
network. Through this project, digital technology could give
Country Energy real-time information on the status of our
network and the energy flows on it. It could also provide
our customers up-to-date information on their energy
consumption habits online, enabling them to tailor their
usage to the times of day when energy is cheaper.
Performance highlights
96.8 per cent
Achieved
Conduct greenhouse gas emission audit Completed
No reportable incidents Achieved
No environmental breaches Achieved
Coffs Harbour employee Steve Brazel suggested at a
meeting that Country Energy should look into growing
Home
its own power poles. From that idea plans for a trial
42 Finding better ways plantation have begun to take shape.
Finding better ways 43

AN ENVIRONMENTAL LEADER
Understanding our footprint – carbon
reduction program
As part of our broader corporate responsibility initiatives,
we’re actively seeking to minimise the impact our operations
have on the environment.
Our footprint, like our network, is significant. We have around
4,000 employees located in 142 sites and we maintain a large
and diverse fleet of vehicles. Our powerlines, substations and
other infrastructure are spread across the largest electricity
network in Australia.
The challenge
During 2007–08 we undertook a major audit of our
emissions to gain a clear understanding of the scope and
scale of our footprint.
The audit spanned the entire organisation, taking in all
activities including air travel, vehicles, buildings and
electricity distribution. Independently verified by Deloitte
Consulting, it provides a clear picture of the scope of our
emissions and the challenge ahead to reduce them.
The audit showed that Country Energy emits about 28,000
tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2
-e) each year in
emissions from direct sources. These direct emissions
represent a small proportion of our total emissions – less
than 4 per cent.
The audit also identified that our indirect emissions are
around 773,000 tonnes of CO 2
-e from line losses and onsite
power usage – accounting for more than 96 per cent of
our total emissions. To ensure transparency and integrity in
our reporting, we’ve voluntarily accounted for and included
in this figure around 136,000 tonnes of CO 2
-e of indirect
emissions from waste, air travel and hired vehicles.
Responding to the challenge
Our response focuses on two major areas:
for example, continued use of accredited GreenPower
will reduce our carbon emissions
performance measures across all our business divisions.
These targets and measures will be phased in during
2008–09.
Environmental performance and compliance
Country Energy’s environmental performance is overseen
by our Chief Safety Officer. Outcomes are reported quarterly
to a Country Energy Board Sub-Committee – the Safety and
Environment Committee – and to the Board, as appropriate.
Country Energy uses an Environmental Management System
(EMS) to identify a range of issues, risks and control
measures associated with our operations, including:
During the year, our EMS was audited and certification to
AS/NZS ISO 14001 was maintained.
To assist our people in carrying out their work in line with the
EMS, this year we developed an Environmental Operations
Handbook for use by employees and contractors. The
Handbook includes a broad overview of our environmental
management activities. It also helps employees and
contractors understand how the activities they perform interact
with the environment and how to conduct operations in line
with the principles of ecologically sustainable development.
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44 Finding better ways

Waste management
During the year, Country Energy undertook a waste management
survey to ensure compliance with recent changes to waste legislation
and to verify classification of our waste. One outcome has been the
development of a ‘Waste Classification Tool’ for our employees that
provides recommendations for correct disposal of all wastes generated
through Country Energy’s operations. We’ve also identified increased
opportunities for improving waste reduction, resource recovery
and recycling.
Country Energy’s statement on the implementation of the State
Government’s Waste Reduction and Purchasing Policy was submitted to
the Department of Environment and Climate Change in August 2007.
Ashford remediation
In March 2006, a comprehensive remediation project commenced
at Ashford Power Station, located in the state’s north, to address
environmental issues. The most significant issue was the removal of half
a million cubic metres of ash left over from decades of power generation.
The ash pile is located on the floodplain of the adjacent Severn River and
Country Energy is proactively working to resolve this environmental issue.
A major purchaser of green energy
We encourage our customers to purchase renewable energy by actively
marketing our range of GreenPower products.
The number of customers choosing these options has grown consistently
over the past seven years, with an increase of around 60 per cent in
the past year. We now have around 48,000 customers who purchase
accredited GreenPower products.
This means we’re sourcing an ever larger amount of renewable energy on
behalf of our customers and purchasing 28 per cent more renewable and
greenhouse friendly energy year on year. We have agreements with some
30 renewable and greenhouse friendly generators across Australia.
The fastest growing segment that we purchase from is wind farms –
in fact we’re purchasing over 15 per cent more wind generated electricity
than last year.
As a portion of our total energy purchases, around 4 per cent is from
green sources – a figure we anticipate to keep rising significantly over
coming years.
Between March 2006 and January 2008, substantial testing and market
research identified potential uses for the ash. Several farming trials
started and some of the ash was sold to agricultural land users. Ash was
also disposed of into a disused coal mine according to strict guidelines.
Ash disposal will continue during 2008–09.
Growth in GreenPower customers
Number of GreenPower customers
50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0
2008
2007
2006
2005
The daily routine of Wayne Frazier and Eric Cameron takes them to one of the most
spectacular Country Energy worksites, the Oaky River gorge east of Armidale. The
generation operations maintenance technicians keep the Oaky River Hydro Electric
scheme in order, helping to feed green power into Country Energy’s network.
The Oaky River facility resumed full operations during the year once repairs were
completed after a boulder crashed into the side of the power station.
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Finding better ways 45

POWER
STATION
WIND
POWER
SOLAR
PANELS
CONTROL
CENTRE
FACTORY
ENERGY
STORAGE
SMART OFFICE BUILDING
(with own generator)
HOSPITAL
(with own generator)
HOUSES
SMART HOUSES
(with own generator)
APARTMENT BUILDINGS
The IN Research and Education
Centre demonstrates what’s
possible with a network that offers
communication between domestic
homes and our control rooms.
46 Finding better ways

INTELLIGENT NETWORK
To meet our strategic goals, we have to be both
innovative and forward thinking and our operations
need to be environmentally sustainable.
Country Energy’s network strategies are designed to provide
customers with a reliable and efficient supply of energy. But
we also know that, to meet our strategic goals, we have to
be both innovative and forward thinking and our operations
need to be environmentally sustainable. That’s why we’re
planning and building the next stage in the evolution of
electricity supply. It’s called the Intelligent Network.
The Intelligent Network is our long-term vision for what
the electricity network is going to become – effectively
bringing the electrical network into the digital age. This
technology will make information available on the minuteby-minute
behaviour of the network and the energy flows
on it. Apart from being able to better monitor power usage
and distribution all along the system, from powerlines to
substations, the Intelligent Network will record energy usage
information in the family home.
Our customers will be provided with up-to-date information
on their energy consumption habits online, allowing them
to tailor their consumption to the times of day when energy
is cheaper. Being able to observe and control their energy
consumption can also help them do their bit towards
combating climate change.
The Intelligent Network will also help us manage our network
better and deliver increasing reliability. Intelligent sensors
and equipment will enable us to decide on the best course
of action to respond to network outages and act quickly to
fix the fault. In some cases, the network will be able to selfrepair,
minimising the number of customers affected by a
fault. We’ll also be able to read electricity meters remotely.
The introduction of intelligent automation like this is yet
another way we plan to meet our commitment to improve
reliability, by transforming the performance of our network
and finding better ways to deliver essential services to
our customers.
Making it happen
Country Energy has already trialled smart metering
technology that allows customers to decide when and how
much energy they use. We’ve also researched more efficient
use of energy in the home, conducted trials of remote
monitoring of the energy supply network and looked into
the potential of broadband internet over powerlines. With
this first-hand experience, Country Energy is ideally placed
to seek out partnerships with leading edge technology and
energy companies and make the Intelligent Network a reality.
Country Energy is the first Australian energy company to
join the Global Intelligent Utility Network Coalition, a group
of companies working together with IBM to develop the
Intelligent Network. The Coalition will comprise energy
suppliers from around the globe representing more than
20 million customers. The Coalition will be able to share
resources and expertise, advancing the development of
the Intelligent Network, while establishing a set of global
standards, processes and regulatory approaches.
Showing what’s possible
Country Energy, in partnership with IBM, has completed
the construction of an Intelligent Network Research and
Education Centre in Queanbeyan. Its aim is to demonstrate
what’s possible with a network that offers communication
between domestic homes and our control rooms.
The Centre shows how domestic appliances, such as air
conditioners or pool pumps, could be switched on and off
remotely, allowing customers to decide their level of energy
consumption. We also show how customers who are moving
house from one part of the network to another could simply
instruct the network when to shut off the electricity to their
old address and switch it on at their new home, right down
to the minute and hour of the day.
Another demonstration illustrates how the Intelligent
Network could respond to an outage caused by a lightning
strike through the use of smart equipment and sensors
designed to respond and help return supply to normal,
all without human intervention. Perhaps more importantly,
the Centre is also a research facility that lets us discover
how new technologies will work in a controlled environment
before we take them out into the field.
The Centre allows Country Energy to demonstrate the future
benefits of the Intelligent Network and is open to visits by
customers, regulators, policy makers, environmental groups
and industry.
The Centre allows Country Energy to demonstrate the
benefits of the Intelligent Network and is open to visits
by customers, regulators, policy makers, environmental
groups and industry.
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Finding better ways 47

OUR BOARD
The members of our Board are responsible to
the voting shareholders for the overall performance
and governance of the company.
Their responsibilities include, but are not limited to: setting strategic direction for the business;
approving and monitoring progress of major capital expenditure and financial performance of the
business; and ensuring compliance with New South Wales Government policies.
Barbara Ward BEc, MPol Econ
Chairman
Craig Murray
Managing Director
Since 6 June 2001
Acting Chairman of Audit and
Risk Committee (meetings held 4
September 2007 and 13 November
2007), Chairman of Country Energy
Gas Pty Limited
Since 8 June 2001
Member of Safety and Environment
Committee, Director of Country
Energy Gas Pty Limited
The Hon Michael Lee
BSc, BE (Hons), FIE Aust
Director
Since 1 March 2002
Chairman of Safety and
Environment Committee since
September 2008, Member of
Audit and Risk Committee
Rowena Sylvester BBus
Director
Since 5 February 2008
Chairman of Audit and Risk
Committee (meetings held 31
March 2008 and 3 June 2008)
Dave Evans BE (Hons)
Director
Since 24 November 2006
Member of Audit and Risk
Committee
Two Board members completed their terms during the 2007–08 year, Tim Sullivan on 31 August 2007,
and Greg McLean on 31 May 2008.
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48 Finding better ways

OUR EXECUTIVE
Craig Murray
Managing Director
Member of the Board of Directors,
leadership, strategy, business
performance, corporate values,
shareholder and stakeholder
relations.
Peter Johnson BBus, ACIS
Company Secretary
Corporate governance, services
to the Board, ethics and security.
Bill Frewen BA LLB
Group General Manager
External Relations
John Adams Dip (Elect Eng), BBus, FIE Aust
Group General Manager
Retail
Ken Stonestreet BE (Hons)
Group General Manager
Networks and Infrastructure
Corporate strategy and business
development, regulatory affairs,
corporate counsel, corporate
marketing and communications,
customer and government relations.
Retail business management,
sales and marketing, national
and residential sales, retail, pricing
and product development.
Electricity, gas and water network
asset management, network
strategy and policy and network
system operations.
Justin De Lorenzo BCom, ACA, ASIA
Group General Manager
Finance, Risk and Operations
Terri Benson BBus, CPA
Group General Manager
Corporate Services
Gary Humphreys
Group General Manager
Service Delivery
Financial management and
accounting, energy trading,
risk management and insurance,
credit control, treasury, supply
chain, fleet and property.
Human resources and
organisational development, safety
and environment, information
services, customer services and
contact centres, Operational
Excellence Office.
Regional field service delivery,
customer service centres,
community relations.
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Finding better ways 49

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Executive remuneration
At the end of 2007– 08, Country Energy
employed 91 employees with total remuneration
packages equal to or exceeding the New South
Wales Senior Executive Service Level 1, compared
to 95 in the previous year. This includes 14
females, the same number as last year.
The following executive officers received a total
remuneration package equal to or exceeding
New South Wales Senior Executive Service
Level 5:
Infrastructure, Ken Stonestreet $375,266
Operations, Justin De Lorenzo $370,000
$352,340
Terri Benson $360,000
Gary Humphreys $366,000
Bill Frewen $360,000.
All executives are subject to formal annual
performance assessments.
Craig Murray – Has been in this role for the
full reporting period. Each year the Board
assesses the Managing Director’s performance.
This includes a review of performance
against objectives established for Safety,
Financial Performance, Stakeholder Relations,
Operational Excellence, and Human Resources.
In 2007–08, Craig delivered strong overall
performance across all dashboard indicators.
Ken Stonestreet – Has been in this role for
the full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In 2007– 08,
Ken delivered on corporate dashboard targets
including Safety, Financial Performance, Customer
Satisfaction, Operational Excellence and Human
Resources.
Justin De Lorenzo – Has been in this role for
the full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In
2007–08, Justin delivered on corporate
dashboard targets including Safety, Financial
Performance, Customer Satisfaction,
Operational Excellence and Human Resources.
John Adams – Has been in this role for the
full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In
2007–08, John delivered on corporate
dashboard targets including Safety, Financial
Performance, Customer Satisfaction,
Operational Excellence and Human Resources.
Terri Benson – Has been in this role for the
full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In
2007–08, Terri delivered on corporate
dashboard targets including Safety, Financial
Performance, Customer Satisfaction,
Operational Excellence and Human Resources.
Gary Humphreys – Has been in this role for
the full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In
2007–08, Gary delivered on corporate dashboard
targets including Safety, Financial Performance,
Customer Satisfaction, Operational Excellence
and Human Resources.
Bill Frewen – Has been in this role for the
full reporting period. Each year executive
performance agreements are established and
objectives set against dashboard responsibility
areas as well as personal objectives. In
2007–08, Bill delivered on corporate dashboard
targets including Safety, Financial Performance,
Customer Satisfaction, Operational Excellence
and Human Resources.
Terry Miller ceased employment with Country
Energy on 31 March 2008. His remuneration for
the 2007–08 financial year was $341,775.
The executive remuneration policy for the 2007–
08 year excludes bonus and ‘at risk’ payments.
No bonus payments were paid to
any employee in relation to this reporting year.
Establishment
Country Energy is a statutory State Owned
Corporation (SOC) under the State Owned
Corporations Act 1989, established by the
Energy Services Corporations Act 1995. Under
this Act, the principal objectives of Country
Energy are:
(a) to be a successful business and, to this
end, to:
I. operate at least as efficiently as any
comparable businesses
II. maximise the net worth of the state’s
investment in it
III. exhibit a sense of social responsibility
by having regard to the interests of the
community in which it operates
(b) to protect the environment by conducting its
operations in compliance with the principles
of ecologically sustainable development
contained in section 6 (2) of the Protection
of the Environment Administration Act 1991
(c) to exhibit a sense of responsibility towards
regional development and decentralisation in
the way in which it operates
(d) to operate efficient, safe and reliable
facilities for the distribution of electricity and
other forms of energy
(e) to be an efficient and responsible supplier
of electricity and other forms of energy
and of services relating to the use and
conservation of electricity and other forms
of energy
(f) to be a successful participant in the
wholesale and retail markets for electricity
and other forms of energy and for services
relating to the use and conservation of
electricity and other forms of energy.
A statutory SOC is declared to be an excluded
matter for the purposes of section 5F of
the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) in relation
to the whole of the Corporations Law other
than certain provisions relating to financial
products, or as may be otherwise declared,
in the Regulations under the State Owned
Corporations Act 1989.
Shareholders
In accordance with the provisions of the State
Owned Corporations Act 1989 and the Energy
Services Corporations Act 1995, Country Energy
has two shareholders, each holding one share
of $1. The shareholders in 2007–08 were the
Treasurer of New South Wales and the Deputy
Premier and Minister for Finance. Shares in an
energy services corporation may not be sold
or otherwise disposed of, except to eligible
ministers.
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50 Finding better ways

Constitution
Country Energy’s constitution comprises a Memorandum and Articles of
Association which address areas normally covered within a Corporations
Law company, including the administration of shares, general meetings,
directors, chief executive officer, remuneration, meeting and administrative
procedures, company secretary, dividends and indemnities of directors
and officers.
Directors’ interests
Directors are required to disclose any material contract or relationship
with Country Energy and to disclose all companies or other organisations
with which they are professionally involved.
Details of directors’ interests are maintained by the company secretary
in a register which is included in the agenda of every Board meeting.
The constitution provides for procedures to be followed in the event of
a conflict or a perceived conflict arising between a director’s interest
and a matter before the Board. Where a Board member declares a
conflict or perceived conflict of interest they are required to leave the
meeting while the matter is considered.
Board performance review
Country Energy’s Board conducts periodic reviews of its performance
by means of an internal survey. These reviews seek to identify where
improvements can be made and assess the quality, timeliness and
effectiveness of information made available to directors.
Non-management meetings
The non-executive directors meet at least once a year without
management in a forum intended to allow for open discussion on Board
and management performance. This is in addition to consideration of
the performance and remuneration of the Managing Director, which is
conducted by the Board in the absence of the Managing Director.
Directors’ remuneration
Directors’ remuneration is determined by the New South Wales
Government and is currently in the form of a cash stipend without ‘at
risk’ elements or non-cash emoluments. Country Energy makes payments
to the directors in accordance with these directions under the framework
of the organisation’s normal payroll system. Out of pocket expenses
related to attendance at meetings are reimbursed.
Indemnities
Under the State Owned Corporations Act 1989, State Owned Corporations
are able to indemnify their directors and officers against certain liabilities
incurred in the course of their employment. The indemnity cannot be
used without the approval of the voting shareholders.
Currently, all Country Energy non-executive directors, the Managing
Director and other officers fitting the criteria detailed in the Treasury
Policy (TPP03–6), have been issued with a Deed of Indemnity in the
form approved by shareholders.
The Deed of Indemnity provides cover against the following types
of liability:
party in his or her capacity as an officer acting in good faith
proceedings, whether civil or criminal, in which judgement is, or was,
given in favour of the indemnified party, or in which the indemnified
party was acquitted
to a proceeding in which a court grants or granted relief to the
indemnified party.
Country Energy also purchases insurance cover for directors’ and
officers’ liability and professional indemnity.
Directors’ attendance at meetings
Board meetings Committee meetings
Eligible Attended Eligible Attended
Barbara Ward 12 12 4 4
Craig Murray 12 12 4 4
The Hon Michael Lee 12 12 4 3
Tim Sullivan OAM 2 2 1 1
Rowena Sylvester 6 6 2 2
Dave Evans 12 12 4 4
Greg McLean 11 11 4 4
Country Energy Board
Director Current appointment Board Audit and Risk
Committee
Barbara Ward
Craig Murray
The Hon Michael Lee
Tim Sullivan OAM
Rowena Sylvester
Dave Evans
1 March 06 to
28 February 09
Concurrent with
appointment as
Managing Director
1 March 07 to
31 August 2010
Term completed
31 August 07
5 February 08 to
4 August 2010
24 November 06 to
23 November 09
Non-executive,
Chairman
Executive,
Managing Director
Acting
Chairman
Safety and Environment
Committee
Member
Non-executive Member Chairman
Non-executive
Non-executive
Non-executive
Chairman
Member
Chairman
Greg McLean
Term completed
31 May 08
Non-executive,
Unions NSW nominee
Member
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Finding better ways 51

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Audit and Risk Committee
The primary objective of the Committee is
to assist the Board of Directors in fulfilling
its responsibilities relating to accounting
and reporting practices of the company and
each of its subsidiaries.
In addition, the Committee will:
to risk management policy and strategy,
debt management policy and strategy, licence
and legal compliance policy and strategy
quality of the audits conducted by both the
company’s external and internal auditors
open lines of communication among the
Board, the internal and the external auditors
to exchange views and information, as well
as confirm their respective authority and
responsibilities
to review the financial information submitted
by management to the Board for issue to
shareholders, regulatory authorities and the
general public
accounting controls of the company
performance against the Terms of Reference
on an annual basis.
Safety and Environment Committee
The primary objective of the Committee is
to assist the Board of Directors in fulfilling
its responsibilities relating to Occupational
Health Safety and Environment practices of the
company and each of its subsidiaries.
In addition, the Committee will advise and
report to the Board on policy, strategy, initiatives
and achievements, in relation to:
accredited service providers in any area
of relevance to Country Energy’s activities,
where reasonably under the control of
Country Energy
the environment, and the achievement of
ecologically sustainable development
Committee to be of relevance to the
Committee’s objectives.
Delegations to management
A comprehensive set of delegations has been
issued to the Managing Director, including the
power to sub-delegate, to allow management
to conduct the business of the Corporation.
Notwithstanding these delegations, specific
rules have been put in place in critical areas
such as energy trading, retail sales and
environmental determinations to ensure the
Board is directly involved in decisions above
predetermined thresholds.
Ethical standards
Our Board has adopted policies addressing the
Country Energy Code of Conduct, conflicts of
interest, gifts, protected disclosures, privacy
and other ethical standards. These policies
apply equally to the Board, management,
employees and contractors.
Code of Conduct
Country Energy has developed a Directors’
Code of Conduct and Board Charter. These
documents form part of Country Energy’s
corporate governance manual. Other documents
included in the governance manual include the
Directors’ Induction Kit and the Committee
Terms of Reference.
Legislative changes
As a New South Wales State Owned
Corporation, Country Energy is generally subject
to the same statutory and legal requirements
as other businesses, with the notable exception
of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). The following
are the main legislative and regulatory changes
made during the reporting period that impact on
Country Energy as an energy services corporation
in relation to gas, electricity and water.
Commonwealth
Australian Energy Market Amendment
(Gas Legislation) Act 2007 (Cth)
The Australian Energy Market Amendment
(Gas Legislation) Act 2007 (Cth) amends
the Australian Energy Market Act 2004 and
establishes a new national gas regime
regulating access to gas pipelines, by adopting
the National Gas Law set out in the National
Gas (South Australia) Act 2007 (SA) and
formalising taxation exemptions.
Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse
Gas Management Amendment Regulation
2006 (Cth)
The Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse
Gas Management Amendment Regulation
2006 (Cth) makes minor amendments to the
existing arrangements for licence fee waivers,
the publication of licences and the operation of
methyl bromide and fire protection regulations
and allows for the discharge of scheduled
substances (other than methyl bromide) if the
substance is being used as feedstock.
Renewable Energy (Electricity) Amendment
Regulations 2007 (Cth)
The Renewable Energy (Electricity) Amendment
Regulations 2007 (Cth) amends the Renewable
Energy (Electricity) Regulations 2001 (Cth)
and updates the renewable power percentage
and the list of equipment that is eligible for
renewable energy certificates, clarifies the
meaning of what are and what are not eligible
energy sources and simplifies the general formula
for calculating the amount of electricity generated
by an accredited power station in a year.
Australian Capital Territory
Electricity (Greenhouse Gas Emissions)
Amendment Act 2007 (ACT)
The Electricity (Greenhouse Gas Emissions)
Amendment Act 2007 (ACT) amends the
Electricity (Greenhouse Gas Emissions) Act 2004
(ACT) and extends the date to achieve the
target benchmark for carbon dioxide equivalent
of greenhouse gas emissions to 2020.
Gas Safety (Provision of Compliance Indicator
and Certificate of Compliance) Code of
Practice 2008
The Gas Safety (Provision of Compliance
Indicator and Certificate of Compliance) Code
of Practice 2008 is made under the Gas
Safety Act 2000 (ACT) and requires that, as
soon as practicable after gas fitting work is
completed, the responsible gasfitter must
attach a compliance indicator to the relevant
consumer piping system and give a certificate
of compliance to the owner or occupier and a
copy of the certificate of compliance to the ACT
Planning and Land Authority.
National Gas (ACT) Act 2008 (ACT)
The National Gas (ACT) Act 2008 (ACT) adopts
the National Gas Law set out in the National
Gas (South Australia) Act 2007 (SA).
Statute Law Amendment Act 2007 (ACT)
The Statute Law Amendment Act 2007 (ACT)
amends the Electricity Safety Act 1971 (ACT)
and the Independent Competition and Regulatory
Commission Act 1997 (ACT) and limits the
Planning and Land Authority’s liability in relation
to public safety warnings and publication of
serious electrical accidents that are issued
honestly and without recklessness and also
provides for minor administrative amendments
and also limits the Commission’s liability.
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Utilities (Energy Industry Levy) Amendment
Act 2007 (ACT)
The Utilities (Energy Industry Levy) Amendment
Act 2007 (ACT) amends the Utilities Act 2000
(ACT) and establishes an Energy Industry Levy
which is payable for the supply and distribution
of gas and electricity. The Energy Industry Levy
also requires reporting and the production of
distribution and sales information. The Energy
Industry Levy is intended to replace current
licence fees.
Utilities (Electricity Network Capital
Contributions Code) Approval 2007
The Utilities (Electricity Network Capital
Contributions Code) Approval 2007 is made
under the Utilities Act 2000 (ACT) and
establishes the Electricity Network Capital
Contributions Code. The Electricity Network
Capital Contributions Code applies to electricity
distributors and outlines the principles and
procedures by which an electricity distributor
may impose a capital contribution charge
payable by a customer in relation to the
costs incurred by the electricity distributor in
developing or augmenting its electricity network.
Utility (Electricity Retail) Licence Conditions
Direction 2008
The Utility (Electricity Retail) Licence Conditions
Direction 2008 is made under the Utilities
Act 2000 (ACT) and requires all retailers of
electricity licensed and operating in the ACT
to have access to an accredited green energy
product, to first offer that product to any new or
reconnecting customer and make the product
available to existing customers at their request.
Utilities (Annual Licence Fees) Determination
Notice 2007
The Utilities (Annual Licence Fees) Determination
Notice 2007 is made under the Utilities Act
2000 (ACT) and updates the licence fees
payable by Country Energy.
New South Wales
Community Land Development Regulation
2007 (NSW)
The Community Land Development Regulation
2007 (NSW) replaces the Community Land
Development Regulation 2000 (NSW) and
makes Country Energy a prescribed public
authority for the purposes of the Community
Land Development Act 1989 (NSW). The Act
provides that by-laws can be made at the
request of public authorities, which may then
be included as a schedule to a neighbourhood
management statement, and stipulates the
rights and obligations of the public authority in
obtaining the benefit of a statutory easement
in relation to service lines (includes pipe, wire,
cable, duct or pole by means of which a service
is to be provided).
Electricity (Consumer Safety) Amendment
Regulation 2008 (NSW)
The Electricity (Consumer Safety) Amendment
Regulation 2008 (NSW) amends the Electricity
(Consumer Safety) Amendment Regulation
2006 (NSW) and requires work on electrical
installations to comply with the new version
of the Australian and New Zealand Standard
(AS/NZ 3000:2007).
Energy and Utilities Administration
Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007 (NSW)
The Energy and Utilities Administration
Amendment (Climate Change Fund) Act
2007 (NSW) amends the Energy and Utilities
Administration Act 1987 (NSW), the fund
establishes the Climate Change Fund (the Fund)
and specifies the purposes for which it may be
applied. The Minister may require distribution
network service providers to make contributions
to the Fund. The Fund replaces the Water
Savings Fund and the Energy Savings Fund.
Electricity Supply (General) Amendment
Regulation 2007 (NSW)
The Electricity Supply (General) Amendment
Regulation 2007 (NSW) amends the Electricity
Supply (General) Regulation 2001 (NSW)
and requires all retail suppliers to operate
a payment plan in respect of small retail
customers who own or occupy residential
premises, and offer a payment plan to any
customer facing financial difficulty prior to
discontinuing electricity supply, and extends the
procedures for entering into and terminating
electricity supply contracts in relation to the
cooling-off period, provision of disclosure notice
and election of a standard form customer supply.
Gas Supply Amendment Act 2008 (NSW)
The Gas Supply Amendment Act 2008 (NSW)
amends the Gas Supply Act 1996 (NSW) and
establishes a wholesale natural gas market
scheme to ensure the continuity of supply
of natural gas to customers. The scheme
applies to the owners and operators of natural
gas transmission pipelines and authorised
suppliers.
Gas Supply (Natural Gas Retail Competition)
Amendment Regulation 2007 (NSW)
The Gas Supply (Natural Gas Retail Competition)
Amendment Regulation 2007 (NSW) amends
the Gas Supply (Natural Gas Retail Competition)
Regulation 2001 (NSW), and stipulates revised
conditions of authorisation relating to payment
plans and discontinuance of supply and requires
all retail suppliers to operate a payment plan in
respect of small retail customers who own or
occupy residential premises.
Gas Supply (Safety Management) Amendment
Regulation 2007 (NSW)
The Gas Supply (Safety Management)
Amendment Regulation 2007 (NSW) amends
the Gas Supply (Safety Management) Regulation
2002 (NSW) and updates references to certain
Australian Standards relating to gas supply.
Pipelines Amendment Regulation 2007 (NSW)
The Pipelines Amendment Regulation 2007
(NSW) amends the Pipelines Regulation 2005
(NSW) and updates a reference to Australian
Standard (2885.1 – 2007), requires the route of
a pipeline for high-pressure gas to be marked in
accordance with 2885.1 – 2007 and stipulates
that licensees must submit annual reports
before 31 August each year rather than within
28 days after each anniversary of the grant of
a licence.
State Revenue and Other Legislation
Amendment (Budget) Act 2007 (NSW)
The State Revenue and Other Legislation
Amendment (Budget) Act 2007 (NSW) amends
the Electricity Supply Act 1995 (NSW) and the
Pipelines Act 1967 (NSW) by removing reference
to the State Rail Authority from the definition
of rail network electricity system and public
authority (respectively).
Water Management (General) Amendment
(Registration of Security Interests) Regulation
2007 (NSW)
The Water Management (General) Amendment
(Registration of Security Interests) Regulation
2007 (NSW) amends the Water Management
(General) Regulation 2004 (NSW) and extends
the time period to 48 months in which security
interests under a 1 July 2004 access licence
can be registered.
Water Management Amendment (Controlled
Activities) Regulation 2008 (NSW)
The Water Management Amendment (Controlled
Activities) Regulation 2008 (NSW), amends
the Water Management (General) Regulation
2004 (NSW) and provides that exemptions
from the requirements of a permit under the
Rivers and Foreshores Improvement Act 1948
(NSW) are carried over as exemptions from the
requirements for a controlled activity approval.
Water Management (General) Amendment
Regulation 2008 (NSW)
The Water Management (General) Amendment
Regulation 2008 (NSW) amends the Water
Management (General) Regulation 2004 (NSW)
and provides that water allocations may be
carried over from year to year in accordance
with any relevant water management plan.
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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Queensland
Clean Energy Act 2008 (QLD)
The Clean Energy Act 2008 (QLD) amends the
Electricity Act 1994 (QLD) and establishes the
Smart Energy Savings Program which increases
the mandatory annual liability under the scheme
to 15% in 2010, and creates a power to allow
further increases up to 18% by 2019, provides
that suspension of an electricity retailer from
trading in the National Electricity Market is
specific grounds for disciplinary action such
as cancellation of the retailer's authority in
Queensland, and provides for a feed-in tariff
that pays small customers for the surplus
energy they contribute. The Smart Energy
Savings Program itself aims to improve the
efficiency and management of the use of energy
and the conservation of energy by Queensland
businesses with medium to large energy
consumption.
Electricity Amendment Regulation 2007 (QLD)
The Electricity Amendment Regulation 2007
(QLD) amends the Electricity Regulation 2006
(QLD) and provides the framework for reviewing
small customer classifications including retailer
reclassification procedures, meter and control
apparatus requirements, the retailer of last
resort scheme, the prescribed methodology
for contestable contract and notified prices,
proposal and consultation requirements
in relation to industry codes, and updates
maximum allowable fees and charges. In
relation to the retailer of last resort scheme,
Country Energy is prescribed the retailer of
last resort for an affected customer in Country
Energy’s area and where Country Energy is not
the defaulting retailer.
Energy Ombudsman Regulation 2007 (QLD)
The Energy Ombudsman Regulation 2007 (QLD)
made under the Energy Ombudsman Act 2006
(QLD) makes it a requirement for a retailer, who
enters into a contract with a small customer
for the provision of a customer retail service,
to provide the Energy Ombudsman with notice
(in the approved form) within 10 business days
of entering into the contract.
Gas Supply Amendment Act 2008 (QLD)
The Gas Supply Amendment Act 2008 (QLD)
amends the Gas Supply Act 2003 (QLD) and
requires retailers to enter into an agreement
with the State or comply with all ministerial
directions in relation to Community Services
prior to the provision of customer retail
services. As an example, an agreement or
directions in relation to Community Services
may include the pensioner rebate scheme.
Gas Supply Regulation 2007 (QLD)
The Gas Supply Regulation 2007 (QLD) made
under the Gas Supply Act 2003 (QLD), provides
the framework for reviewing small customer
classifications including retailer reclassification
procedures, proposals and consultation
requirements in relation to amending industry
codes, disconnection and reconnection
including compensation for failure to disconnect
or reconnect and notice requirements for
retailers and fees.
National Gas (Queensland) Act 2008 (QLD)
The National Gas (Queensland) Act 2008 (QLD)
repeals the Gas Pipelines Access (Queensland)
Act (QLD) and adopts the National Gas Law set
out in the National Gas (South Australia) Act
2007 (SA) and formalises taxation exemptions.
South Australia
Australian Energy Market Commission
Establishment (Variation) Regulations
2008 (SA)
The Australian Energy Market Commission
Establishment (Variation) Regulations 2008
(SA) amend the Australian Energy Market
Commission Establishment Regulations Act
2005 (SA) and provide a definition of small
to medium consumer.
Australian Energy Market Commission
Establishment (Consumer Advocacy Panel)
Amendment Act 2007 (SA)
The Australian Energy Market Commission
Establishment (Consumer Advocacy Panel)
Amendment Act 2007 (SA) amends the Australian
Energy Market Commission Establishment Act
2004 (SA) and establishes an independent
Consumer Advocacy Panel to promote the
interests of all consumers of the energy market
and in particular to benefit small to medium
consumers of electricity and natural gas.
Climate Change Reduction and Greenhouse
Emissions Reduction Act 2007 (SA)
The Climate Change Reduction and Greenhouse
Emissions Reduction Act 2007 (SA) establishes
South Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions
target to be achieved by 31 December
2050, and also provides for voluntary sector
agreements.
Electricity (Fee-In-Scheme – Solar Systems)
Amendment Act 2008 (SA)
The Electricity (Fee-In Scheme – Solar Systems)
Amendment Act 2008 (SA) is made under the
Electricity Act 1996 (SA) and establishes the
Fee-In Scheme. The Fee-In Scheme provides
that the retailer return any credit in charges
payable by the qualifying customer for the
supply of electricity, and supply to the qualifying
customer information relating to the amount of
electricity fed into the distribution network by
the qualifying customer and the amount they
are to be credited.
Electricity (General) Variation Regulations
2007 (SA)
The Electricity (General) Variation Regulations
2007 (SA) is made under the Electricity Act
1996 (SA) and provides for connection testing
and inspection procedures and includes
electrical burns as accidents which require
an investigation, reporting and erection
requirements for conductors or other cable
systems attached to existing aerial lines.
Electricity (Principles of Vegetation Clearance)
Variation Regulations 2007 (SA)
The Electricity (Principles of Vegetation
Clearance) Variation Regulations 2007 (SA)
amend the Electricity (Principles of Vegetation
Clearance) Regulations 1996 (SA) and vary
the procedure in respect to objections for
vegetation clearing, the requirements for
conductors which are not insulated and
constructed to operate at a voltage from 132KV
to 275KV and increase the prescribed planting
or nurturing vegetation near public power lines
to 10 metres for 132KV (single pole) 15 metres
for 132KV (other than single).
National Electricity Amendment Rules
The National Electricity Amendment Rules
amend the National Electricity Rules in relation
to reallocations, technical standards for wind
generation transmission of last resort planning,
cost recovery of localised regulation services,
traders class participants, ancillary services,
region change applications and obligations and
qualifications of metering providers.
National Gas (South Australia) Act 2008 (SA)
The National Gas (South Australia) Act 2008
(SA) repeals the Gas Pipelines Access
(South Australia) Act 1997 (SA) and amends
the Australian Energy Market Commission
Establishment Act 2004 (SA) and establishes
the National Gas Law. The National Gas Law
is intended to promote efficient investment
in, and efficient operation and use of, natural
gas services for the long-term interests of
consumers of natural gas with respect to price,
quality, safety, reliability and security of supply
of natural gas. Each state and territory is a
participant in the National Gas Law and will
be implementing legislation to that effect in
their respective jurisdiction. The National Gas
Law also clarifies the rule making functions
and powers of the Australian Energy Market
Commission (AEMC) and the requires the AEMC
to have regard to the national gas objective.
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National Electricity (South Australia)
(National Electricity Law – Miscellaneous
Amendments) Amendment Act 2007 (SA)
The National Electricity (South Australia)
(National Electricity Law – Miscellaneous
Amendments) Amendment Act 2007 (SA)
amends the National Electricity (South Australia)
Act 1996 (SA) and provides definitions for the
meaning of access disputes, direct control of
network services, negotiated network service,
regulatory obligation or requirement and
regulatory payment. The revenue and pricing
principles are introduced in accordance with
the national electricity objective.
National Electricity (South Australia) Variation
Regulations 2007 (SA)
The National Electricity (South Australia) Variation
Regulations 2007 (SA) amend the National
Electricity (South Australia) Regulations 1998
(SA) and introduce merit review and other
non-judicial review, service of summons for
witnesses, costs for access disputes, and other
administrable amendments.
Natural Resources Management (General)
Variation Regulations 2008 (SA)
The Natural Resources Management (General)
Variation Regulations 2008 (SA) amend the
National Resources Management (General)
Regulation 2005 (SA) and update the fees
and minor administrative matters.
Natural Resources Management (Water
Resources and Other Matters) Amendment
Act 2007 (SA)
The Natural Resources Management (Water
Resources and Other Matters) Amendment
Act 2007 (SA) amends the Natural Resources
Management Act 2004 (SA) to facilitate
interstate trade in water entitlements to
address administrative matters and revise
water entitlements.
Statutes Amendment (Electricity and Gas) Act
2006 (SA)
The Statutes Amendment (Electricity and Gas)
Act 2006 (SA) amends the Electricity Act
1996 (SA) and the Gas Act 1997 (SA) and
updates regulations on electrical installation
requirements, vegetation clearances and
provides for public warning statements to be
made by a Technical Regulator in respect to
electrical equipment or installation practices
that are unsafe or pose a danger to persons
or property.
Victoria
Electricity Safety Amendment Act 2007 (VIC)
The Electricity Safety Amendment Act 2007
(VIC) amends the Electricity Safety Act 1998
(VIC) and revises the arrangements relating
to electricity safety management schemes,
enables enforcement officers to serve notices
on registered electrical contractors and licensed
electrical installation workers compelling them
to rectify non-compliant electrical work, and
enables the Governor General to declare that a
regulated distribution or transmission company
is not a major electricity company. The electricity
safety management schemes aims to minimise,
as far as practicable, the hazards and risks
to the safety of persons and property arising
from the supply network of major electricity
companies.
Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2007 (VIC)
The Energy Legislation Amendment Act 2007
(VIC) amends the Electricity Industry Act
2000 (VIC) and provides the requirements for
purchase and sale of small renewable energy
generation electricity which includes wind, solar
and hydro, and confers on the Commission
the role of assessing the fairness and
reasonableness of prices, terms and conditions.
Energy Legislation Further Amendment Act
2007 (VIC)
The Energy Legislation Further Amendment Act
2007 (VIC) amends the Electricity Industry Act
2000 (VIC) and the Gas Industry Act 2001 (VIC)
and provides the framework for the supplier of
last resort arrangements, defines the meaning
of relevant customer information, and extends
the operation of the customer safety net
provisions.
Energy and Resources Legislation Amendment
Act 2007 (VIC)
The Energy and Resources Legislation
Amendment Act 2007 (VIC) amends the
Electricity Safety Act 1998 (VIC), the Pipelines
Act 2005 (VIC) and the Electricity Industry
Act 2000 (VIC). The period of registration for
electrical contractors is extended to a period
of up to five years, the operation of cathodic
protection systems is varied along with
other minor administrative amendments and
reasonable steps in relation to compulsory
acquisitions of easements has been specified
to include satisfaction of all the requirements of
an approved consultative plan by the proponent
or licensee.
Essential Services Commission Amendment
Act 2008 (VIC)
The Essential Services Commission Amendment
Act 2008 (VIC) amends the Essential Services
Commission Act 2001 and provides the
Commission with the power to make a code
of practice for a specified regulated entity
or a class of regulated entities in relation
to customer-related standards, procedures,
policies and practices (including with respect
to payment of compensation to customers) and
specified accounting practices and records.
Gas Safety (Gas Quality) Regulations 2007 (VIC)
The Gas Safety (Gas Quality) Regulations 2007
(VIC) is made under the Gas Safety Act 1997
(VIC) and establishes a set of minimum safety
standards for the quality of gas and the testing
of natural gas conveyed through transmission
pipelines. Gas companies may seek an
exemption from compliance with standards and
testing requirements if they can demonstrate
to Energy Safe Victoria that the conveyance,
supply, sale or use of the gas will be safe in
the circumstances.
National Electricity (Victoria) Amendment Act
2007 (VIC)
The National Electricity (Victoria) Amendment
Act 2007 (VIC) amends the National Electricity
(Victoria) Act 2005 (VIC) and provides for the
modification of the application of the National
Electricity Law and Rules during specified periods
and stipulates the transitional arrangements
relating to the administration and enforcement
of current distribution pricing determinations by
the Australian Energy Regulator.
National Gas (Victoria) Act 2008 (VIC)
The National Gas (Victoria) Act 2008 (VIC),
repeals the Gas Pipelines Access (Victoria)
Act 1998 (VIC), adopts the National Gas Law
set out in the National Gas (South Australia)
Act 2007 (SA), and stipulates that certain
transitional clauses, relating to access
arrangements under the Gas Pipelines Access
(Victoria) Law contained in the National Gas Law
will not apply as laws of Victoria.
Judicial decisions
Sheather v Country Energy [2007] NSWCA 179
Mr Sheather, the owner of the helicopter which
crashed into a Country Energy owned spur line
while flying well below the mandatory height
regulations for aircraft, appealed an earlier
decision on the grounds that Country Energy
had failed to provide sufficient warning of the
spur line. Despite Country Energy observing all
legal compliance requirements, the NSW Court
of Appeal held that Country Energy owed a duty
of care to pilots and aircraft owners and had
breached its duty of care.
Bonny Glen [2007] NSWCA 179
The owner of an orchard sued Country Energy in
the District Court of NSW for damages arising
from a fire caused by pine trees contacting
with overhead powerlines. The Court held that
Country Energy owed the plaintiff a duty to trim
the trees and awarded the plaintiff damages for
its fruit trees, equipment and fencing burnt in
the fire. The Court did not allow indirect losses
flowing from the plaintiff’s removing trees from
the orchard due to the loss of the pine trees
which acted as a windbreak. The plaintiff has filed
an appeal which will be heard in February 2009.
There were no prosecutions under the
Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 (Cth).
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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Credit card certification
Use of corporate credit cards is in line with Country Energy’s Procedural
Guideline: Credit Cards, Treasurer’s directions and Premier’s memoranda.
Freedom of Information (FOI)
During the year, nine applications were received under the Freedom of
Information Act 1989 (Cth).
2006 – 2007 2007 – 2008
Applications granted in full 7 2
Applications partially granted 1 4
Applications denied 1 1
Applications where no documents held 1 1
Applications pending - 1
There were no internal reviews during the 2007–08 financial year.
There was no involvement by the Ombudsman or the Administrative
Decisions Tribunal in relation to any requests under the FOI Act.
No major issues arose in relation to Country Energy’s annual reporting
compliance under the FOI Act.
Privacy
Country Energy complies with The National Privacy Principles which form
part of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) as the base line privacy standards in
relation to personal information held.
Securing Country Energy information assets
In line with the Premier’s Memorandum No. 2007 – 04, outlining
guidelines to meet the NSW government’s electronic information security
objectives, Country Energy has achieved and continues to be audited
for compliance to the International Standard AS/NZ ISO/IEC 27001
Information technology – Security techniques – Information security
management system. A key component of the standard is the creation
and ongoing maintenance of an Information Security Management
System (ISMS).
The ISMS is designed to ensure the selection of adequate and
proportionate security controls that protect Country Energy’s information
assets. Further it gives a high level of confidence to the Country Energy
Board and Executive, stakeholders and customers that our information
assets are managed securely.
Independent internationally certified external auditors regularly review
and report on Country Energy’s compliance to this standard as a key
activity to maintain certification. This ongoing auditing and reporting are
a required part of operating, monitoring, maintaining and improving our
ISMS and more importantly ensure that Country Energy information
assets are secured.
Business continuity
Country Energy is committed to a business continuity management
framework that identifies and supports critical processes to be resilient
in times of stress.
This framework covers processes identified as critical within current
national security context of ‘medium’. It includes a number of Business
Continuity Plans for processes identified as critical to operations.
At a regional level there are strategic and tactical level plans to assist
employees deal with regional emergencies. These plans take a specific
focus on identifying and containing environmental and safety hazards.
The apex plan within the framework is the Corporate Crisis Management
and Recovery plan which is invoked to deal with high impact high
consequence events.
Ongoing review and monitoring occurs at all levels of management
through table top exercises to promote familiarity with plans and
processes for rapid and effective recovery, modification of plans to
cope with new and redundant sub-processes and open discussion around
process improvement and risk mitigation.
The outcomes of simulated exercises and subsequent recommendations
for changes to Business Continuity Plans are reported to the Executive
Manager accountable for the process under review and to the Executive
in regards to Crisis Management and Recovery.
Country Energy’s business continuity framework is broadly modelled
on Standards Australia document HB221:2004 and HB292:2006.
Risk management
Country Energy is committed to a risk management framework that
supports our corporate responsibilities while at the same time assisting
the achievement of our strategic objectives.
Country Energy’s risk management process is modelled on the
AS/NZS 4360:2004 standard. Country Energy’s context is based on the
Country Energy Strategy Statement, set by the Board and Executive. The
risk assessment process including identifying, analysing and evaluating
risks is conducted on an annual basis through the Executive and Board
Priority Risk review and also on a quarterly basis through Divisional Risk
Coordinators’ meetings.
Risk treatment occurs through the existing controls that are in place
and also through the fulfilment of risk control plans by the responsible
divisions.
Ongoing review and monitoring occurs at all levels of management
through open discussion and reporting by the Divisional Risk
Coordinators and the Risk Management Team to the Executive and
to the Audit and Risk Committee of the Board.
The Risk Management Policy is designed, amongst other things to:
it a key part of normal business practice and decision making
against pre-established criteria
emerging issues and after analysis provide appropriate treatment
in line with Country Energy’s risk appetite
about risk management issues both in Country Energy and with
relevant external stakeholders.
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56 Finding better ways

The Priority Risk review conducted on an annual basis provides input to
the annual Internal Audit Plan and the insurance program adopted by the
company. The recommendations from each internal audit are reported to
the Board’s Audit and Risk Committee who also monitor their follow-up.
Where possible and appropriate, risks identified in the Priority Risk review
are transferred to insurers. A separate review of the level and terms of
the cover of the company’s insurance program is carried out, at least
annually, to ensure that the cover is effective and cost efficient.
Consultancies
The total amount spent on consultants during the year ended 30 June 2008
was $1.571 million. Of the total amount spent on consultants, $0.050
million was capitalised and $1.521 million was expensed. The main purpose
of the engagements was to provide business, financial or legal advice.
Property disposal
Nine items of property were disposed of this year, with a combined
value of $578,910. All were considered surplus to our operations and
the proceeds were used to fund capital works projects. Applications for
access to documents concerning details of properties disposed of may
be made in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1989.
Summary of overseas travel for the year ended 30 June 2008
Purpose of travel Names of employees Organisation
visited
Country
Meet with insurers Lawrence Clark Various Insurers Switzerland
UK
USA
Attend study course Gary Humphreys Harvard Business
School
Attend cable jointing
training course
Visit energy
companies
Meetings with
IBM and glogal
Intelligent Utility
Network Coalition
Meet with various
strategic suppliers
Attend workshop
on control system
cyber security
Visit software vendor
to conduct testing
Attend the Global
Intelligent Utility
Network Coalition
and the Power to
Innovate Symposium
Dates
17/08/2007–
30/08/2007
USA 31/08/2007–
05/11/2007
Michael David ABB Sweden 14/09/2007–
29/09/2007
Ken Stonestreet
Terri Benson
Terri Benson
Ken Stonestreet
Patrick Cooper
Craig Murray
Ken Stonestreet
Col Ussher
James Abercromby
Daniel Rickard
Terrence Wilson
James Gardner
Deborah Smith
Col Ussher
Ben Hamilton
Clinton McAlister
Patrick Cooper
Reliance Energy
Tata Power
IBM Global IUN
Coalition
Global Blue
Strategic
Enel
GE
IAM/Logica
Department of
Homeland Security
India 04/11/2007–
10/11/2007
USA 24/11/2007–
02/12/2007
Thailand
Italy
UK
02/04/2008–
14/04/2008
USA 04/04/2008–
16/04/2008
GE Energy UK UK 09/04/2008–
10/05/2008
IBM USA 01/06/2008–
08/06/2008
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