Flexible Trading Arrangements

What is Flexible Trading Arrangements (FTA)?

Flexible Trading Arrangements (FTA) is a National Electricity Market reform that gives customers and energy service providers more flexibility in how electricity is used, shared and traded, particularly where customers have solar, batteries, EV chargers or other consumer energy resources (CER).

Under FTA, existing market arrangements are expanded to better support modern energy use. This includes new metering and settlement options that allow electricity to be measured and settled more precisely and enable customers to participate in the market in new ways without disrupting traditional supply arrangements.

FTA is designed to:

• Better integrate consumer energy resources into the NEM
• Support new use cases, such as shared assets and street‑side EV charging
• Provide flexibility for customers and service providers to choose how and when energy is supplied and settled

The reform follows the AEMC’s Unlocking CER Benefits Through Flexible Trading final rule determination and is being delivered by AEMO in stages.

Which participants are impacted by FTA?

FTA primarily impacts market participants who choose to participate and are involved in new or amended MSATS transactions and NMI arrangements enabled by this reform. This includes:

• Financially Responsible Market Participants (FRMPs)
• Metering Data Providers (MDPs)
• Metering Providers (MPs)
• Metering Coordinators (MCs)

FTA only impacts participants who intend to implement or support flexible trading arrangements use cases, such as secondary settlement points or new metering configurations. Participants that do not opt in are not required to make system or process changes.

Does FTA apply to electricity only, or does it also apply to gas?

FTA applies to the National Electricity Market (NEM) and introduce changes to electricity MSATS and B2B procedures and systems.

Is participation in FTA mandatory?

While FTA is a voluntary rule change, it introduces changes to MSATS and B2B procedures and aseXML schemas that apply to relevant participant roles from the applicable go‑live dates. Participants impacted by FTA must ensure their systems and processes are ready to comply by the relevant release commencement date.

What new market roles are introduced under FTA?

FTA introduces a new role category of NMI Service Provider (NMISP), which supports new secondary settlement points introduced as part of the flexible service arrangements.

Participants intending to perform this role must meet AEMO accreditation requirements.

Procedures

Technical Specifications

When does FTA commence?

FTA is being delivered in two stages:

• 31 May 2026 (FTA Release 1) – This release marks the commencement of Type 9 metering installations, enabling assets that were previously unmetered such as street furniture like kerbside EV chargers, smart street lighting or similar infrastructure to be measured and settled within the NEM.
• 1 November 2026 (FTA Release 2) – This release marks the commencement of the Flexible Trading Arrangements themselves, including Type 8 meters and Secondary Settlement Points (SSPs) and broader flexible trading use cases.

Participants should refer to the latest FTA Go‑Live Plan published on the AEMO website for confirmed milestones.

How is FTA being delivered?

FTA is being delivered through phased releases to support industry readiness and implementation. Each release may include specific procedural, system, or schema changes.

Details on the key milestones, go-live dates and readiness activities can be found in the relevant FTA Go-Live Plans for each release.

Is there industry testing for FTA?

Yes. Industry testing forms part of AEMO’s readiness approach for FTA. Testing opportunities and supporting information are coordinated through industry forums such as the Industry Testing Working Group (ITWG), with surveys and updates issued via NEM Reform communications.

If you are interested in participating in an industry test for FTA, please email through to [email protected].

Do I need to be accredited before FTA goes live?

Accreditation is required for:

• Participants intending to perform the NMI Service Provider (NMISP) role category
• Participants wishing to provide Metering Provider and Metering Data Provider services for type 8 and type 9 metering installations

Participants intending to provide FTA services into the market from the effective date of the Rule should prepare for, and participate in, readiness and testing activities as part of industry testing.

What MSATS procedure changes are part of FTA?

FTA introduces updates to MSATS Procedures and Technical Specifications, including changes to support new data fields, enumerations, and obligations for certain participant roles. These changes have been consulted on through the AEMO and IEC consultation process, and final procedures are published on AEMO’s website.

How are malfunctions for secondary settlement points treated under FTA?

FTA allows the installation of secondary settlement point metering devices by the customer, a person acting on behalf of the customer or a metering provider. In the case of customer provided metering equipment, if the malfunction is not rectified within 20 business days the secondary settlement point is excluded from settlements calculation and energy allocation reverts to the premise.

Detailed information is provided in the FTA consultation materials. The final MSATS Procedure Principles and Obligations for all Connection Points and Metrology Procedure Part B sets out how obligations apply and how issues are managed within existing processes.

What are the aseXML schema changes for FTA?

AEMO has planned three schema related releases for 2026, aligned to the delivery of the two major rule change initiatives: FTA and Shortening Settlement Cycles (SSC).

1. The first release supports FTA Release 1 (Type 9 metering) and requires updates to non-versioned enumeration XSDs for r46 only, with no new aseXML schema version introduced.
2. The second release is aseXML r47, which bundles the NEM Retail B2M schema changes required for FTA Release 2 and SSC. This release introduces versioned schema changes and will be delivered into the Production environment to meet the procedural requirements of the SSC initiative, FTA Release 2 changes will be included in this schema update to minimize the number of schema changes for 2026. The FTA Release 2 aseXML schema elements will not take effect until the rule effective date.
3. The third release, is aseXML r48, which contains the NEM Retail B2B schema changes required for FTA Release 2, including new Service Order types, subtypes, data elements, and response codes introduced by the B2B v4.1 Procedures. It should be noted that the NEM Retail B2M and B2B changes for FTA Release 2 are supported by both r47 and r48 and these elements become effective at the same date, 1-Nov-2026.

This approach enables AEMO to align schema releases to regulatory determinations, while minimising the change impact to industry.

When will the updated aseXML schemas and enumeration files be available?

Updated aseXML schemas (including ElectricityEnumerations.xsd) are published once they have been formally approved through the aseXML Schema Working Group (ASWG) process. AEMO will issue communication once the final files are available.

Once approved, schemas are published on AEMO’s aseXML Schemas webpage under the relevant release. Participants are encouraged to refer only to the published files when preparing for implementation.

For schema-specific questions or requests for clarification, participants should contact the ASWG at [email protected]

Where can I see which NMI Service Providers are accredited?

Accredited NMI Service Providers (NMISP) are listed on AEMO’s Accreditation and Registration webpage, consistent with other accredited market roles.