The Authority has recently completed three market performance reviews. Summaries of the reviews and action recommendations are provided below. Full reports are available at:

A review into extremely high frequency-keeping costs in August 2011 found a flaw in the frequency-keeper selection process. The system operator has modified the frequency-keeper selection method to achieve more competitive frequency keeping outcomes.

A second market performance review looked into the recent occurrence of spurious price-separation events between the North and South Islands.

The price volatility was found to be caused by the system operator applying a constraint in the final-pricing model that set the capacity of the HVDC link to zero if the link was in the process of changing direction during the start of a 30-minute trading period.

The review recommended that this practice be ceased. The Authority is currently working with the system operator to modify market-systems software to remove this constraint from the final-pricing model.

The third review concerns the lack of effectiveness of the high spring washer (HSW) resolution process in certain situations.

The HSW resolution process was found to be undermined by near-identical transmission constraints being automatically applied in the final-pricing model. The near-identical constraints are produced by the system operator's new constraint builder, called the 'simultaneous feasibility test' (SFT).

Near-identical transmission constraints generally didn't occur when constraints were designed manually. The review concludes that rather than correcting this aspect of SFT, it is easier to modify the Electricity Industry Participation Code (Code) provisions relating to the resolution of high spring washer situations.

Accordingly, an urgent Code amendment is being progressed in accordance with section 40 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010.

As a consequence of the Demand side bidding and forecast (DSBF) Code amendments which were gazetted on 20 October 2011, the system operator has proposed some amendments to the Policy Statement and the Procurement Plan.

The Authority is calling for submissions on these proposed amendments. Submissions close on 25 January 2012.

The consultation paper is available at:

The Authority's Board has decided to defer its review of the undesirable trading situation (UTS) provisions in the Code until after the High Court issues its decision regarding the Authority's UTS decision on the events of 26 March 2011.

The High Court is expected to issue its decision before the end of February 2012.

The Authority’s first annual market performance review, for the year 1 November 2010 to 31 October 2011, is available at:

Hard copies may be obtained by emailing info@ea.govt.nz

Retail market statistics, including consumer switching statistics for November 2011, have been published and are available at:

The Authority has released a consultation paper proposing the creation of eight new fields within the registry. The Authority considers the proposal would improve the Authority's performance of its market monitoring obligations, reduce manual reporting requirements for distributors and improve the quality of registry information for all users.

The paper is available at:
http://www.ea.govt.nz/our-work/consultations/retail/creating-additional-fields-registry/

The consultation opens on 13 December 2011 and closes at 5.00pm on 7 February 2012.

Submissions on the consultation on the regulations to implement the FTR market, the summary of submissions and the Authority's response, along with the revised proposed regulations have been published and are available at:

The Authority would like to recruit a number of volunteers to take part in research in the New Year to study the usefulness and user-friendliness of its website.

One-hour interviews will be arranged in Wellington with the Authority's research consultants, at which participants will be asked to work through a series of website scenarios to establish how the site can be improved.

Volunteers are asked to email info@ea.govt.nz with 'website research' in the subject line by 15 December 2011. Please include your name, contact phone number, organisation and job title.

Presentations by the Authority's chairperson, Dr Brent Layton, and the chief executive, Carl Hansen, to the stakeholder briefing on 7 December have been published and are available at: