M-co delivers reconciliation system for New Zealand's electricity market

Marketplace specialist M-co today announced the delivery of a new reconciliation IT system on time and on budget to the Electricity Commission.

M-co has also begun the Reconciliation Manager service provider role to the NZ electricity market in a total deal worth up to $14.5m for up to 11 years of service.

"The system enables the Commission to implement its new rules for reconciliation which are intended to improve the efficiency and fairness of the electricity market," said Carl Hansen, M-co's Chief Executive.

"Successfully building the complex reconciliation system and beginning the Reconciliation Manager role are significant milestones for M-co."

"We have a track record of delivering complex IT systems on time and on budget, and so it is great to achieve that again while meeting the exacting requirements of the Electricity Commission and the wider NZ electricity market.

"We’ve recently completed the first reconciliation run, which was for April, involving $554m of transactions and it’s pleasing to see how well it’s working," said Mr Hansen.

The reconciliation function is a key component in the overall operation of the NZ Electricity Market as it reconciles all electricity volumes flowing into and out of Transpower's high voltage grid. This ensures all buyers and sellers in the electricity market are allocated their correct share of traded electricity.

M-co secured strategic support from YouDo Limited to undertake the project, a Wellington based IT development firm spun out of M-co in 2007. The project took 9 months to complete, with M-co working closely with the Electricity Commission to ensure the system was built to industry requirements.

"The new reconciliation system will deliver benefits for consumers by improving the transparency and accuracy of reconciliation data," said the Chairman of the Electricity Commission, David Caygill.

"The successful delivery of the project required the active participation of a large part of the electricity industry. The Commission was pleased at the positive and co-operative approach of the industry which meant a significant project has been delivered on schedule."

M-co's Carl Hansen said the secret to M-co's success in building such a complex system was the extensive experience of its IT developers in the energy sector.

"When you use top-notch people, you get top-notch results. It is a classic case of the advantages of using a small team of experts, rather than a larger, less specialised team which is what you often see in less successful IT development projects."