New South Wales Government
Water and Energy

• Water licensing
• Basic water rights
• About licences
• Dealings and trade
• Approvals
• Corporate licences
  • Major utilities
  • Snowy Hydro
  • Irrigation corporations

1. Home
2. Water Licensing
3. Corporate licences
4. Major utilities
5. Snowy Hydro

Water Licensing

Snowy Hydro Limited

The Snowy Mountains Scheme was built over a 25 year period from 1949 to 1974. It diverts water for irrigation west to the Murray and Murrumbidgee river systems and produces clean, renewable, hydro electricity through a complex integrated infrastructure which includes sixteen major dams, seven power stations, 145km of interconnected tunnels and 80km of aqueducts.

Snowy Water Licence

Snowy Hydro Limited (SHL) was issued with a package of agreements, licences and other regulatory instruments in preparation for corporatisation in 2002. One component of this package was the Snowy Water Licence (PDF 395KB) (licence) issued on 30 May 2002 under the Snowy Hydro Corporatisation Act 1997.

The Water Administration Ministerial Corporation (represented by the NSW Department of Water and Energy) is required to undertake a review of this licence after the first five years. The scope of this first five year review is limited to the provisions of the licence relating to the initial release of water to the Snowy River for environmental reasons.

General Information – Stage 1 of the review

• Background information about Snowy Hydro Limited, the licence and Stage 1 of the review process (PDF 182KB)

The Department of Water and Energy (DWE) invited public submissions to assist with review of the licence from 9 December 2007 to the 31 January 2008. A total of 19 written submissions were received.

View submissions to the five year review of the Snowy Hydro Water Licence.

Review Outcomes – Stage 2 of the review

As a result of the consultation process, DWE is preparing two response documents. The first will be a Licence Review Report, which will collate the issues raised in the submissions received, provide responses to issues within the scope of the review, and outline proposed actions and licence amendments resulting from the review. The second document will identify the proposed variations of the Snowy Hydro Limited’s water licence and will collate the proposed licence variations that resulted from the licence review. It will also collate the variations previously agreed to by the NSW, Victorian and Australian Governments, the Murray Darling Basin Commission and Snowy Hydro Limited over the course of the last five years but not yet formally incorporated into the licence. The reports will be made public when approved by the Minister. 

Legislative provisions

• Snowy Water Licence (PDF 395KB)
• Snowy Water Inquiry Outcomes Implementation Deed 2002 (PDF 276KB)
• the Snowy Hydro Corporatisation Act 1997

Further Information

For further information on the Snowy Water Licence, please contact us.

Read more about Snowy Hydro Limited and its operations.