Impact reporting 2026

Turning individual accountability into collective learning and impact

In 2025-26, our Full Signatories continued to demonstrate their commitment to delivering better outcomes for customers + communities through practical initiatives, transparent reporting and continuous improvement. Their reporting highlights both the progress being made across the energy sector and the challenges that require sustained attention. Several common themes emerged reflecting a shared commitment to putting customers + communities at the heart of Australia's energy transition.

Giving customers + communities a stronger voice

Full Signatories are increasingly embedding customer and community perspectives into organisational decision-making. Customer panels, advisory committees, deliberative engagement and co-design processes are helping shape investment priorities, regulatory proposals, service improvements and infrastructure planning. Importantly, the focus is shifting beyond consultation towards demonstrating how customer and community insights influence decisions, including how organisations communicate trade-offs and close the feedback loop.

Strengthening reliability, resilience and emergency response

Improving outcomes for customers experiencing power interruptions remains a significant priority. Full Signatories reported investments in network resilience, community energy hubs, backup power, improved outage communications and practical on-the-ground support during extreme weather and emergency events. There is also recognition that more needs to be done for customers experiencing frequent or prolonged outages, particularly in regional and remote communities and for people who rely on electricity for essential health and wellbeing needs.

Supporting affordability and an equitable energy transition

Affordability remains central to organisational decision-making. Reported initiatives include improving network efficiency, exploring innovative tariff arrangements, expanding access to renewable energy, strengthening energy literacy and providing more targeted support for customers experiencing vulnerability. As electrification accelerates, Full Signatories are also exploring how coordinated planning, new technologies and more efficient use of existing infrastructure can help manage costs while enabling greater customer participation in the energy transition.

A number of Signatories have also leveraged our #BetterTogether Energy Literacy, Train the Trainer program to offer programs for financial counsellors, First Nations communities and Men’s Sheds.

Building trust and delivering benefits for regional communities

As new energy infrastructure is developed, Full Signatories are placing greater emphasis on early engagement, respectful relationships with landholders and First Nations communities, and delivering tangible local benefits. Initiatives include community benefit-sharing frameworks, local procurement and employment opportunities, community investment programs and more transparent approaches to managing construction impacts.

A consistent area for improvement is ensuring these commitments translate into measurable, lasting outcomes that reflect community priorities and demonstrate how local feedback has shaped decisions.

Making customer experiences simpler and more inclusive

Digital transformation, improved customer communications and more accessible services are helping reduce customer effort and improve interactions with energy businesses. At the same time, Full Signatories recognise the importance of maintaining human support for customers with complex needs, strengthening culturally appropriate engagement and ensuring that digital innovation does not create new barriers to accessing essential services.

Strengthening accountability and measuring what matters

A significant theme across the reporting is the growing emphasis on measuring outcomes rather than simply reporting activities. Full Signatories are developing stronger approaches to assessing social value, customer experience, community benefits and organisational performance. Areas identified for continuous improvement include more consistent engagement practices, clearer reporting on the difference initiatives make, stronger feedback and complaints processes, and greater transparency about progress against commitments.

From individual insights to collective impact

The 2025-26 reporting demonstrates meaningful progress, alongside a shared recognition that important challenges remain. These insights provide a valuable foundation for collective learning across The Energy Charter, helping identify emerging better practices, common opportunities for improvement and challenges that cannot be addressed by individual organisations alone.