suggests that, in the absence of the Federal Government鈥檚 stimulus package, the COVID-19 pandemic would reduce Australia鈥檚 GDP by about 0.9 percent 鈥� over $17 billion 鈥� by the end of 2020.
Businesses across regions and industries are feeling the impact of COVID-19 and, trying to adapt the way their staff operate and communicate. This rapid shift towards remote working and social distancing is creating ongoing implications for businesses everywhere and the utilities sector is also facing the challenges of how to anticipate what will happen or how to prepare for it.
Impact on Australia鈥檚 Utilities Sector
Utilities providers in Australia have been generally responsive and transparent during this crisis. The quickly stated, 鈥淭here is no evidence that drinking water will be affected by the COVID-19 virus or that it is transmitted by drinking water. Water is an essential service and water utilities are well prepared to manage their response to COVID-19.鈥�
Queensland Natural Resources, Mines, and Energy Minister, Dr Anthony Lynham released a statement saying, 鈥淛ust as state-owned power and water assets are ready for Queensland鈥檚 severe weather events, they are ready for the inevitable impact of coronavirus. I can assure Queenslanders that, should the virus spread, and if staff are taken offline, well-rehearsed contingency procedures will ensure ongoing essential services.鈥�
Around the country, power and water providers have been rapid in responding to COVID-19, assuring customers that service will continue and staff that they鈥檒l remain safe, implementing measures such as working from home and social distancing practices.
As news develops quickly and governments continue tightening restrictions on people鈥檚 movement and gathering, the full impact on Australia鈥檚 utilities industry is difficult to gauge. With the availability of workforce under risk, another critical impact is on supply chains with potential bottlenecking at primary shipping ports.
exploring the impact of COVID-19 on Australia鈥檚 solar sector, discovering that the virus will impact the manufacturing and supply of key equipment and materials used in the construction of solar energy facilities in Australia.
Downstream, these facilities can also expect delays or disruption in procurement of the necessary equipment and materials, with anticipated delays to construction timelines, milestones and completion dates. We鈥檙e also already seeing short-term price spikes as a result of availability and access to supply chains.
Digital Safeguards to Change
With increasing utilities providers undergoing digital transformation, this streamlining of supply chain processes and inventory management has also reduced the ability for some companies to cope with global shock events like COVID-19.
However, intelligent technologies and digital business platforms have equipped many companies with the right demand management systems to leverage different strategies for supply, transmission, and storage. The complexity of data analysis can help businesses highlight vulnerabilities in real-time and present other options or outcomes throughout a business鈥� lifecycle.
Digital transformation was and remains a critical safeguard to limiting people鈥檚 immediate contact as it enables staff to operate remotely and unlock avenues for automation 鈥� regardless of industry sector. At times of heightened caution for people鈥檚 safety, automation remains paramount to protecting people and businesses.
A outlined some valuable next steps for businesses that applies to any industry. The key takeaways from this report were to remain open and responsive with staff and customers; monitor key indicators across your supply chain; don鈥檛 neglect medium-term planning for short term responses; and centralise communication systems to ensure transparency and preparedness.
At this time of global confusion and ever-changing news developments, it鈥檚 valuable having some reliable information resources that can offer guidance during this crisis. 麻豆原创 recently hosted a series of virtual forums called聽, with a second series going live on
The utilities session further explored the impact of COVID-19 on our industry鈥檚 workforces with an interactive customer panel from AGL and Mercury. We looked at the current situation and how it continues shifting the way we work in the field and office.
The second episode was an industry leadership panel with EY and Accenture, gathering some key insights about how utilities is being impacted and adapting to this global pandemic.聽聽from the 2020 Adaptive Strategies in a Changed World Edition 1, and .
