Call for nominations for Retail Advisory Group members and Wholesale Advisory Group members
The Electricity Authority (Authority) is calling for nominations for members of the Retail Advisory Group (RAG) and the Wholesale Advisory Group (WAG).
The RAG and the WAG are two of the advisory groups set up by the Electricity Authority under its Charter about Advisory Groups, which is a requirement of the Electricity Industry Act 2010.
The RAG provides independent advice to the Authority on the development of the Electricity Industry Participation Code 2010 (Code) and market facilitation measures, focusing on the relationships between the retailer, distributor and the consumer.
The WAG provides independent advice to the Authority on the development of the Code and market facilitation measures concerning the design of the wholesale electricity market, including spot electricity, ancillary services, and risk management contracts.
The Authority is seeking members for the RAG and WAG who can bring:
strategic, commercial, and regulatory expertise
knowledge and expertise from a relevant component of the electricity supply chain
an ability to contribute effectively to the advisory group’s tasks
a balanced representation of views
an ability to contribute to the advisory group by providing independent advice regardless of whether or not they are an independent person
a high level of integrity and credibility within the electricity industry.
Nominations should be emailed to rag@ea.govt.nz or wag@ea.govt.nz by 5pm Tuesday 14 April 2015, with ‘Nomination for Retail Advisory Group’ or ‘Nomination for Wholesale Advisory Group’, whichever applies, in the subject line.
As a result of the Authority’s consultation on improvements to transmission loss modelling, the system operator is increasing the number of loss tranches used for modelling AC transmission equipment within the scheduling, pricing and dispatch (SPD) software.
From 00.00 am on Wednesday 1 April 2015, the system operator will model losses on AC transmission equipment using six loss tranches instead of the current three.
The Authority considers that more accurate modelling of transmission losses when dispatching and pricing generation in the wholesale market would promote its statutory objective as it would allow the system operator to more accurately determine the cheapest generation options. This will increase competition between generators and operational efficiency in the electricity industry, for the long-term benefit of consumers.
Published: Retail Advisory Group and Wholesale Advisory Group Papers
We have published papers from the 12 March 2015 meeting of the Retail Advisory Group (RAG), and the 12 March 2015 meeting of the Wholesale Advisory Group (WAG).
Authority seeks feedback on findings of the spot market review
The Authority has completed a review of aspects of New Zealand’s spot market for electricity. It sees no compelling reason to make any fundamental changes to New Zealand’s spot market design. However, the Authority is proposing to develop and evaluate two options that have the potential to enhance retail competition for the long term benefit of consumers.
The options are to:
base settlement prices on real-time prices (RTPs) calculated and published during the trading period
add an hours-ahead market so that real-time prices apply only to residual quantities not covered in the hours-ahead market.
These options should improve efficiency and support retail and hedge market competition because spot market participants would receive more reliable and timely information on settlement prices. This should help them to make better decisions about discretionary generation and consumption, which will contribute to more efficient market outcomes.
Subject to consultation, the Authority is proposing to add a project to its work programme in 2015/16 to explore these options in detail sufficient to prepare a consultation proposal.
As part of its review, the Authority sought the views of experts on the PJM market in the US and the National Electricity Market (NEM) in Australia. These experts were Howard Haas and Joseph Bowring from Monitoring Analytics (the official monitor for the PJM market) and Greg Thorpe from Oakley Greenwood (consultant specialising in energy market design), respectively.
Their reports are attached as appendices to the main body of the Authority’s discussion paper. Howard Haas and Greg Thorpe will be available to discuss and answer questions about their reports; see the next item for more details.
As part of the spot market review, the Authority will hold a question and answer session with Howard Haas and Greg Thorpe between 9.30 and 10.30 am on 15 April 2015, before the bi-monthly regulatory managers’ and consumers’ meeting.
Both Howard and Greg will be available by video conference to discuss and answer questions about their reports.
Please RSVP by 5pm Friday 10 April 2015 to info@ea.govt.nz, with “Spot market review workshop” in the subject line.
The Authority has published guidance on our website to help residential consumers understand the effect that spot price contracts could have on their power bill. Pricing plans based on spot prices are more likely to be suitable for residential consumers who can accommodate large fluctuations in their electricity bills and change their electricity usage to manage the risks and rewards created by varying prices.
We explain the role of the spot market, outline the factors that residential consumers should consider before taking up a spot price contract and provide detailed examples about the ways that fluctuations in spot prices can affect different types of households.
Memo regarding impact of the expiry of interim certification on controlled load profiles
The Authority has published a memo reminding participants that from 1 April 2015 any ‘interim’ certified metering installations incorporating a load control device cannot be reconciled using an approved profile that requires a certified load control device.
Please be aware that in accordance with clause 7 of Schedule 15.3, reconciliation participants must obtain a validated meter reading or permanent estimate on the date the profile change takes effect.
Clearing manager consultation: revisions to general prudential requirement methodology
The clearing manager, NZX Limited, is consulting on minor changes to its methodology for determining the general prudential requirements for the wholesale market.
Submissions close with the clearing manager at 5pm on 27 March 2015.
Information plays an important part in building market confidence and strength.
To assist interested parties in tracking market development, the Authority publishes NZ electricity hedge contracts as a standard section of its weekly Market Brief.
