Members of the Regulator are appointed by the responsible minister under the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011, and require substantial experience or knowledge in relevant fields. The Chair is full-time and all other Members are part-time.
In addition to their collective responsibilities, Members of the Regulator each apply their expertise to a specific area of focus. This adds depth to the Regulator's appreciation of its operating environment and enables agency officers to draw directly on Members' knowledge and experience. Members provide an update on their area of focus at each Regulator meeting.
At 30 June 2016 the Regulator had five Members, including the Chair. Ms Chloe Munro was appointed Chair on 2 April 2012, Ms Anne T Brown and Ms Virginia Malley were appointed on 4 June 2012, Mr Michael D'Ascenzo was appointed on 22 March 2013, and Dr Peter Davis was appointed on 18 January 2016.
Ms Chloe Munro | Chair
'Essentially we are an economic regulator with an environmental objective. We have proven to be agile and capable: building on our experience to continually refine the way we administer our schemes, apply our judgement and strengthen our relationships in order to achieve our purpose of accelerating carbon abatement for Australia.'
Ms Munro has had a distinguished career in both the public and private sectors, with particular expertise in infrastructure and resources. Prior to her appointment as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Clean Energy Regulator, Ms Munro was the Chair of the National Water Commission; the independent non-executive Chairman of AquaSure, the consortium building Victoria's desalination plant; and a non-executive director of Hydro Tasmania.
From February 2004 until July 2009, Ms Munro was an executive director of Telstra. She held leadership positions in human resources, business operations, information technology, public policy and communications, and customer service.
Ms Munro served in the Victorian public sector from 1996 to 2004, in the positions of Secretary of the Department of Primary Industries, Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, and Deputy Secretary of the Department of Treasury and Finance. In the Department of Treasury and Finance, she headed the division implementing Victoria's energy reform and privatisation program.
Early in her career she worked in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors in Kenya, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Ms Munro holds master's degrees in mathematics and philosophy from Cambridge University and in business administration from the University of Westminster. She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and the Institute of Public Administration Australia and was awarded a Centenary Medal for outstanding contribution to public administration in 2001.
Ms Anne T Brown | Member
Area of focus: Audit committee and risk framework
'Participating in a well-established Audit Committee and assisting with the maturing risk management framework is important to support the robust governance arrangements that underpin and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the agency's operations, decision-making and reporting.'
Ms Brown has substantial knowledge and practical experience of Australian and international exchange-traded financial markets, risk management, related infrastructure and regulatory environments.
She is a non-executive director of the Australian Design Alliance and a member of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's Markets Disciplinary Panel, the independent peer review forum that takes disciplinary action against participants and market operators for breaches of the Australian Market Integrity Rules.
Previously Ms Brown was Chief Risk Officer with ASX Limited following its merger with SFE Corporation Limited. Ms Brown also chaired broader group executive committees and developed integration strategy, risk management and policy for ASX's two clearing houses. Ms Brown also represented ASX as the Chair and executive committee member of CCP12, an influential global industry association involving all major international clearing houses. Prior to the ASX/SFE merger, Ms Brown was a general manager with SFE, overseeing risk management, market surveillance, compliance and audit.
Ms Brown holds a double major degree in accountancy and computer science from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. She is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Mr Michael D'Ascenzo AO | Member
Area of focus: Cross-agency compliance
'To address the challenge of reducing carbon emissions, the Clean Energy Regulator has operated as a capable and trusted agency, relied upon to make sound decisions. The agency's changing policy environment and client base emphasises the need to be resilient and adaptable, building integrated and enduring capabilities based on excellent knowledge and data.'
Mr D'Ascenzo is recognised internationally for leadership and expertise in administration, strategy and governance, and technical and design skills in tax law and superannuation.
He is a member of the Foreign Investment Review Board and is also on the International Monetary Fund's panel of experts.
Mr D'Ascenzo was a non-executive Director of Australia Post from 2013 to 2016. Prior to that he was the Federal Commissioner of Taxation. As Commissioner of Taxation he was a member of the Board of Taxation and the Australian Crime Commission, as well as vice chair of the OECD's Forum on Tax Administration.
Mr D'Ascenzo is an Honorary Professorial Fellow at Melbourne University and an adjunct professor of the University of New South Wales. He holds degrees in economics and law from the Australian National University and is also a graduate of the Harvard Business School Program for Management Development, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and the University of Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, honorary life member of CPA Australia, a Fellow of the Institute of Company Directors, and an honorary Fellow of the Association of Taxation and Management Accountants.
In 2010 Mr D'Ascenzo was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to public administration. In 2012 he was named the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia's Federal Government Leader of the Year.
Dr Peter Davis | Member
Area of focus: Renewable energy
'It is an exciting time to be a regulator with interests in renewable energy and the environment. Widespread adoption of rooftop solar, establishment of utility scale wind and solar farms, and the emergence of new technologies such as battery storage and electric vehicles, means the intersection of renewable energy and carbon reduction is both clear and topical.'
Dr Davis has extensive experience in the Australian energy sector including at the Chief Executive and General Manager level. He has expertise in regulatory and structural reform of critical infrastructure services in both regulated and competitive markets, in particular in the areas of renewable energy, energy efficiency and demand side management.
Dr Davis is a non-executive Director of the Australian Energy Market Operator, and a Council Member of the University of Tasmania. Previously he was Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Aurora Energy Pty Ltd, an energy utility with interests in electricity distribution, generation, retail and gas supply. He was also a Director of the Energy Supply Association of Australia and chaired its Greenhouse Policy Committee.
Dr Davis holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the Solar Energy Research Centre at the University of Queensland, a master's in business administration from Deakin University, an honours degree in science from Monash University, and degrees in science and education from the University of Tasmania. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Engineers Australia.
Ms Virginia Malley | Member
Area of focus: Market development, and client education and engagement
'We encourage our clients to voluntarily comply with their regulatory obligations and support their compliance efforts with an accessible array of training and education programs and frequent opportunities to provide feedback. Having engaged, active and compliant clients has resulted in high compliance rates for each scheme, significantly contributing to the rate at which Australia accelerates its carbon abatement.'
Ms Malley has extensive experience in the investment and banking sectors including as a company director. Her areas of expertise are financial and environmental markets, risk management, regulatory compliance and corporate governance.
Ms Malley is a non-executive director of Perpetual Superannuation Limited, a member of several Perpetual Compliance Committees and the Sydney Airport Trust Compliance Committee, and a director of the Nature Conservation Trust of New South Wales.
Previously Ms Malley was Chief Risk Officer at Macquarie Funds Management Group, and a Member of Macquarie's Clean Technology, Asia/Pacific, Private Equity and Global/Advisory Investment committees. She oversaw the risk management of portfolios worth more than $85 billion and managed prudential regulator and ratings agency relationships.
Ms Malley is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Applied Finance from Macquarie University, a Graduate Diploma in Environmental Law from the University of Sydney, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Regulator meetings
Under the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011, the Chair of the Regulator may convene a meeting at any time. Between 1 July 2015 and 30 June 2016, the Regulator met 11 times, including one out-of-session meeting.
See Appendix C for details of meeting dates and apologies.