ActewAGL

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ActewAGL
Type	Private
Founded	2000
Headquarters	Canberra, Australia
Key people	John Knox, Acting CEO Jim Service, Chairman
Industry	Utilities
Products	Utility services: Electricity Natural Gas Water Wastewater Green Energy
Revenue	AU$592.6 million (2006-07)
Employees	1,388 (at 30 June 2007)
Website	www.actewagl.com.au

ActewAGL is Australia's first multi-utility to offer electricity, natural gas, water and wastewater services in a single organisation. It is the only joint-venture of its kind in Australia.^[1]

ActewAGL provides utility services in the ACT and South-east NSW.

[edit] History

ActewAGL was formed in October 2000 when the Australian Gas Light Company (AGL) and ACTEW Corporation, an ACT Government owned enterprise, entered into Australia's first utility joint venture.^[2]

Following October 2006 business dealings with AGL and Alinta, ownership of ActewAGL's retail arm was shared equally between AGL energy and ACTEW Corporation and ownership of ActewAGL's distribution arm was shared equally between Alinta and ACTEW Corporation. Further changes to the distribution partnership occurred when a consortium including Singapore Power purchased Alinta in 2007. The distribution partnership is now owned equally by Singapore Power and ACTEW Corporation.

In February 2004, ActewAGL entered into a management agreement with TransACT Capital Communications Pty Ltd. This means that ActewAGL now manages the day-to-day operations of TransACT. The TransACT network provides access to full telecommunication services.^[3]

[edit] Business initiatives and affiliates

ActewAGL owns a number of companies including:

• Ecowise/Ecowise Environmental, Australia’s largest provider of integrated environmental analytical, monitoring and consulting services.
• Cantec, a Canberra-based telecommunications consultancy.
• Partly owns TransACT Communications, the builder and operator of the local fibre-optic cable network, delivering fixed and mobile telephony, subscription television and broadband internet services.
• Grapevine, a joint-venture internet service provider formed with TransACT.
• The recently acquired Neighbourhood Cable, which owns and operates HFC cable networks delivering high-speed broadband internet services, cable television and telephone services in Mildura, Ballarat and Geelong.^[4]

Green initiatives

Since its beginning, ActewAGL has continued to undertake several innovative programs to help the environment. They include the following:

Greenchoice By opting for the green energy program, the few cents extra ActewAGL customers pay in addition to their electricity account each day is invested in renewable energy generation from sources like mini hydro, wind power and biomass.^[5]

ActewAGL solar This purpose of this initiative is to encourage the use of renewable energy sources, by offering support and advice to those interested in installing solar generation systems to their homes.^[6]

ActewAGL hydro While most hydro-electric developments require the building of dams and lakes, ActewAGL's mini-hydro uses an existing water supply to provide electricity that would otherwise come from fossil-fuel power stations.^[7]

Wind farms ActewAGL is a joint venture partner in the construction of the Woodlawn wind farm near Tarrago in NSW It will consist of 25 wind turbines and features a viewing platform and educational displays for passing visitors. The wind farm will be capable of producing sufficient green electricity for 22,000 homes, each replacing over 124,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year.^[8]

Eco-living Exhibition The Eco-living Exhibition featured three state-of-the-art energy- and water-efficient display homes at Majura Rise Estate, North Watson. The exhibition closed in December 2006, but information about the homes is still available on the ActewAGL website^[9]

[edit] References