Summary of the biannual credit auction
Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme Performance Report 2023–24.
The Scheme uses an economic framework consisting of 1,000 ten-year “salt credits” to regulate saline water discharges to the Hunter River.
A Credit Auction is held online every 24 months, most recently on 24 April 2024, and each event auctions 200 credits to replace those about to expire.
The credit allocations and cost to each bidder is shown in Table 6.
Table 6: 2024 credit auction results
| Bidder | Credits allocated | Total cost |
|---|---|---|
| Wambo Coal Pty Ltd | 20 | $250,000 |
| Bengalla Mining Company Pty Ltd | 3 | $45,000 |
| Liddell Coal Operations Pty Ltd | 25 | $318,714 |
| Mount Thorley Operations Pty Ltd | 51 | $619,589 |
| MACH Energy Australia Pty Ltd | 19 | $232,954 |
| Hunter Valley Energy Coal Pty Ltd | 27 | $342,428 |
| Hunter Valley Operations Pty Ltd | 35 | $436,698 |
| AGL Macquarie Pty Ltd | 20 | $257,500 |
| TOTAL | 200 | $2,502,883 |
Net revenue from the 2024 auction ($2,502,883 including GST) will be used to offset the costs of the scheme in the 2024-2026 operating years. Any shortfall in funding the operation of the scheme is supplemented by the EPA directly invoicing HRSTS participants.
The full credit auction report is available.