The ACCC has issued a draft determination proposing to grant authorisation to enable Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery and a group of thirteen Councils in metropolitan Melbourne to jointly procure organic waste processing services through the South Eastern Organics Group. Authorisation is proposed to run until 10 July 2032.
Nine of the thirteen Councils already had ACCC authorisation to jointly procure organic waste processing services through the South Eastern Organics Group until 2032 (Bayside City, Cardinia Shire, Casey City, Greater Dandenong, Frankston City, Glen Eira City, Kingston City, Monash City, and Mornington Peninsula Shire). Four additional Councils (Melbourne City, Port Phillip City, Whittlesea City, and Yarra City) have sought authorisation to join the South Eastern Organics Group on a contingency basis in case an organics processor providing services to any of the four additional Councils is no longer able to do so in the future.
The ACCC proposes to authorise the application. However, to reflect the contingency nature of the application as it relates to the additional Councils, the ACCC proposes a condition to limit the duration of any organic processing contracts entered into through the South Eastern Organics Group by any of the four additional councils to no more than three years. A time limit addresses the ACCC’s concerns about the possible effects on competition in the market if those councils were to enter into long term contracts through the group.
The ACCC now invites submissions in relation to this draft determination by 29 January 2021, before making its final decision. In particular, the ACCC invites submissions from the Applicants and interested parties as to whether three years is an appropriate time limit on the use of South Eastern Organics Group contracts by the additional councils.
Further information about the ACCC’s draft determination is available on the ACCC public register at: Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Group (Organic).