Phosphate Resources Ltd. v. The Commonwealth

An Australian federal court upheld a Determination by the Administrator of Christmas Island setting the fees chargeable for use of electricity on the Island. Phosphate Resources, a major user of electricity on the Island challenged one of the purposes of the Determination – compelling large users of electricity such as Phosphate to examine alternative options for power generation as part of an effort to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. The court held that if the Administrator expressly took into account the reduction of GHG emissions as a factor in setting the electricity fees on the Island, it is a legitimate public policy objective.