Water Trading

Water Trading

Sunwater participates in the water trading markets throughout its water supply schemes.

Sunwater has mechanisms in place to ensure that water trading activities are conducted in an equitable and transparent manner and provide clarity to market participants. Details of these mechanisms are outlined in our Water Trading Code of Conduct.

Ruralco

One of Sunwater’s key mechanisms that ensures fairness in the trading process is the use of an independent water broker, Ruralco. In accordance with our Water Trading Ringfencing Guideline, Ruralco is physically and digitally removed from all information relating to Sunwater’s business to ensure that market sensitive information is not utilised in trading activities.

Water Exchange

Sunwater uses Ruralco’s online trading platform, Water Exchange for all temporary and permanent water trading activity. The platform is available for public use.

Ownership details are not listed on the platform, therefore, trading activities are confidential, however the data relating to pricing and volumes of trades are made publicly available (more detail is made available under temporary transfer sale information further below).

Customers seeking to purchase water on the platform can do so by registering a trading account. For assistance in registering an account or to enquire about the Sunwater allocations available, contact Sunwater’s Ruralco water broker through the Ruralco website.

Please note, for water sold by Sunwater, customers are unable to complete temporary transfers through the Sunwater Online site, transfers will need to be processed through Ruralco directly. All temporary trades are subject to local conditions and require Sunwater’s approval after submission to the water broker.

Sunwater Water Trading Board

Sunwater has worked with the Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water to deliver the Queensland Water Markets Optimisation (QWMO) action plan which aims to improve Queensland’s water markets to maximise the value and availability of underutilised water and improve visibility of market information across the state.

To support the uptake of underutilised water, Sunwater has launched an online water trading board to make it easier for customers and non-customers who are looking to buy or sell water to easily find each other for temporary and permanent trades. That platform is available on the Sunwater website here.

Seasonal allocations available from Sunwater

Sunwater’s seasonal allocations (water available for temporary trade) are made available to trade each year on the Water Exchange platform. A unique web page has been created for Sunwater customers to view the allocations available for each scheme. You can view the information on the Ruralco web page, or view them on Sunwater’s Temporary Transfers page.

For information on:

• regulatory requirements in ROP Water Supply Schemes, please visit the Water markets and trading page on the Queensland Government website
• ringfencing, view our ringfencing arrangements and guidelines
• details of how Sunwater conducts its water trading activities is outlined in Sunwater’s Water Trading Policy.
• announced allocations for individual water supply schemes, visit our water supply schemes page
• Sunwater’s water trading dispute resolution process, please refer to our Dispute Resolution Process.

Temporary transfer sale information

As a requirement of the Water Act 2000 (Qld), Sunwater is required to publish seasonal water assignment (temporary transfer) sale information for relevant scheme’s which reference the requirement in their resource operation licence (ROL).

For more information regarding the temporary transfer information, view the Temporary Transfer Sale Information page.