semo annual report 2013.pdf

Regulatory Authority Annual Report

Market Operator Performance

Period: 1st October 2012 to 30th September 2013

SEMO Annual Report - 2013

Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 3

2 MANAGE CHANGE ........................................................................................................ 4

2.1 IT CAPITAL EXPENDITURE 2010-2013 .......................................................................... 4 2.2 SYSTEM RELEASES ........................................................................................................ 6 2.3 MODIFICATION MANAGEMENT ...................................................................................... 8 2.4 MODIFICATIONS PROCESS DEVELOPMENT ................................................................... 11

3 SERVICE DELIVERY ................................................................................................... 16

3.1 CORE MARKET OPERATIONS FUNCTION PERFORMANCE ............................................. 16 3.2 PLANNED RE-SETTLEMENT M+4 ................................................................................. 18 3.3 AD-HOC PRICING AND AD-HOC RE-SETTLEMENT RUNS .............................................. 18

3.4 ADMINISTRATION OF CREDIT COVER .......................................................................... 19 3.5 BREACHES OF THE TRADING AND SETTLEMENT CODE ................................................ 20

4 MANAGE STAKEHOLDERS....................................................................................... 22

4.1 STRUCTURED APPROACH TO REGULATORY INTERFACE ............................................... 22

5 PROVIDE INFORMATION .......................................................................................... 23

5.1 CUSTOMER QUERIES IN A TIMELY MANNER ................................................................ 23 5.2 FACILITATE AND EDUCATE PARTICIPANTS TO ACCEDE TO THE CODE .......................... 26

5.3 FACILITATE INTERACTION WITH CUSTOMERS ............................................................ 302

6 SEM REVIEW................................................................................................................. 30

6.1 FORMAL QUERIES ........................................................................................................ 30

6.2 MARKET REVIEW ........................................................................................................ 35

6.3 OTHER STUDIES AND WORK ........................................................................................ 38

Introduction

SEMO Annual Report - Draft

1 Introduction

SONI Ltd. and EirGrid plc, operating as the Single Electricity Market Operator (SEMO) are required

under Condition 17 and 10 of their respective Market Operator Licences to provide an annual report to

the Regulatory Authorities on Market Operator Performance.

The period covered by this annual report is for financial year 2013 (from 1st October 2012 through to

30th September 2013).

In line with all other reports from SEMO, Quarters will be defined according to the financial year as

follows:

Q1 = 1st October to 31

st December

Q2 = 1st January to 31

st March

Q3 = 1st April to 30

th June

Q4 = 1st July to 30

th September

The four main categories of performance metric covered are:

Manage Change

Service Delivery

Manage Stakeholders

Provide Information

An additional section providing a review of key areas of the SEM, is also included.

Manage Change


2 Manage Change

2.1 IT Capital Expenditure 2010-2013

Capital Expenditure (Capex) is required to enable SEMO to invest in new and improved systems in order to fulfil its operational and market

management requirements. A total of 17 capital business cases were submitted to the Regulatory Authorities as part of the 2010-13 price control

submission. These business cases focused on IT infrastructure requirements, the need for additional operational support systems, reporting

requirements, data storage and system monitoring tools. The progress of each business case can be viewed in Table 1 below:

No Project Name Note/Benefit Delivery Date

1 Hardware Upgrade Three year Delivery timeline. Phase 1 October 2011 - COMPLETE

2 System Monitoring

Reporting

This proactive system will help significantly

reduce the time it takes to find and clear system

faults.

Design Phase - December 2011 - COMPLETE

Ordering and Commissioning - January 2012 - COMPLETE

Go live date Q1 2013 - COMPLETE

3 Systems

Management

This system will help facilitate Patch

Management, Code Releases, centralised software

server updates and will help the more efficient

utilisation of IT infrastructure resources.

Design - December 2011 - COMPLETE

Ordering and Commissioning - January 2012 - COMPLETE

Go live date Q1 2013 –CMS vendor code, Oracle Database &

Linux – COMPLETE - Final Phase: Application integration &

rollout -Q4 2013

4 Virtualisation

This project virtualises all of the SEMO non

production environments. Phase 2 will tackle the

virtualisation of SEMO’s Corporate systems but

excluding the Central Market Systems.

Phase 1 Virtualisation of non production environments -

December 2011 – COMPLETE

Phase 2 Virtualisation of Corporate systems – started.

5 Oracle Logging Auditor recommendation for security logging. Design Phase - Quarter 1 2012 – COMPLETE

Delivery date - July 2012 - COMPLETE

6 SharePoint and

Document

Facilitates the storage, organisation and sharing of

documents within SEMO

Phase 1 Storage of Processes, Work Procedures and Checklist

templates, Compliance Register - COMPLETE



Management Phase 2 Migration of all SEMO users from files stores to

Sharepoint – COMPLETE

7 Data Storage Relieves data storage problems and reduces costs.

Phase 1 Database Partitioning - November 2011 - COMPLETE

Phase 2 Database Archiving - December 2011 - COMPLETE

Phase 3 File Storage Management – COMPLETED

8 Data Warehouse This will provide SEMO with enhanced capacity

for carrying out detailed market analysis.

Phase 1 Infrastructure is due be delivered in July 2012 –

COMPLETE

Phase 2 Design and Procurement phase is due to start Quarter 3

2012 – COMPLETE

Phase 3 Implementation of CMS Historical database –

COMPLETE - Phase 4 Data warehouse and BI tools – Delayed

until completion of Eirgrid Group data warehouse strategy

9 Reporting Database

Upgrade

This is now a business critical system which

requires additional system support. Delivery date - July 2012 - COMPLETE

10 Oracle Database

Server Version 2

The database is struggling to maintain acceptable

performance and requires significant maintenance.

Phase 1 Delivery date – New File system due July 2011 –

COMPLETE

Phase 2 Upgrading to 11G and migrating to Linux July 2012 –

COMPLETE

11

New

Communications

Links

Key infrastructure components providing fully

redundant, consistently available high

performance links

Upgrade design started –Link order will be placed in Q4 2013

12 CMS Pre Production

Environment (IPT)

Environments for investigating, testing and

diagnosing issues in a timely and efficient manner.

Delivery Jan 2012 The CMS Pre Production Environments will be

commissioned and in place for January 2012 - COMPLETE



13 Axapta Upgrade

This system is used for reconciling bank accounts,

processing cash receipts, maintaining market

ledgers, managing collateral and bad debt and

managing market currency exposure.

Delivered in May 2011. Further upgrades may be required –

COMPLETE

14 On-Line Help

System

This system will allow external stakeholders to

submit and track any new or existing queries

directly through a SEMO portal.

Phase 1 Business requirements SEMO are gathering the business

requirements. The business requirement gathering stage is due to

be completed by December 2011. – COMPLETE Phase 2

Upgrade of Helpdesk and implementation of Limited

Communications failure solution – COMPLETE Phase 3 Delivery

COMPLETE

15 Electronic FAX

Solution

Audit recommendation. The current manual

processes for fax communications has the

potential for error or omission, may not be timely

enough, is difficult to co-ordinate across dual site

operations, is open to security breaches, and does

not provide auditable permanent records of

incoming or outgoing communications.

Phase 1 Business Specification and Design The business

specification for this project has been compiled and the design

agreed - COMPLETE

Phase 2 Procurement and Delivery

SEMO are now in the procurement phase of this project. Delivery

date Quarter 4 2012. – COMPLETE

16 On-Line Registration

System

The online registration system should decrease the

workload for new participants entering the SEM

and make the registration process less daunting

and more transparent.

Phase 1 Requirements and Design – In Progress – Due to be

completed in Q4 2012

Phase 2 Implementation – Started

17

Training

Environment

(Internal)

It is essential that additional Market Application

environments are made available to allow SEMO

to optimally train staff and thus reduce the

potential of operational issues in the live systems.

Phase 1 Delivery due July 2012 - COMPLETE

Table 1: Details of Capital Business Cases 2010-2013

Manage Change


2.2 System Releases - Central Market Systems Releases (01-Oct-2012 – 30-Sep-2013)

The following table summarises the releases deployed to the CMS in the period 01-Oct-2012 to 30-

Sep-2013:

CMS Release Deployment

Date Release Type

No. of

Change

Requests

No of

Defects

Interface

Impact?

SEM R2.0.2 23-Oct-2012 Wash-up (IDT) 0 7 No

SEM R2.1.0 16-Nov-2012 Scheduled 13 10 Yes

SEM R2.2.0 10-May-2013 Scheduled 7 23 Yes

SEM R2.2.1 25-Jun-2013 Wash-Up 0 6 No

Table 2: Release Activity Oct 2012 – Sep 2013

- SEM Release 2.3.0 – Proposed Deployment: November 15th

2013

The following table outlines the approved scope for the SEM R2.3.0 release to the CMS:

SEM R2.3.0 Approved Scope

CR Ref. Mod. Ref Sub-System Description

SEM_PC_CR174 N/A MI MPI Dropdown values for a Trading Site

SEM_PC_CR186 N/A MA Export Functionality in MA

SEM_PC_CR265 N/A STL Task Functionality

SEM_PC_CR310 N/A MA Run Cancellation Initialisation

SEM_PC_CR312 N/A MI Run Cancellation Functionality

SEM_PC_CR168 N/A STL Unnecessary File Import Type selection

SEM_PC_CR311 N/A MI VTOD Status Changes for Approval

SEM_PC_CR294 N/A STL DDF Linked to System Type within POMAX file import

SEM_PC_CR203 N/A MA Displaying UUC Penalty Costs in MA

Table 3: Approved Scope for SEM R2.3.0

The scope was published to the industry on April 22

nd 2013.

The design phase completed on schedule in July 2013.

Factory Test of the ABB software executed to schedule from August 21st to August 30

th 2013

inclusive.

Brady software was delivered on August 15th; ABB software was delivered on September 9th

.

System Integration Testing commenced on delivery of the software and is on-schedule for

completion on November 1st 2013.

The approved scope will not have a functional impact on the interfaces between Participant

systems and the Central Market Systems; however a short phase of Market Test will be conducted

from October 9th to October 25th to facilitate a regression test phase across the SEM.

The release is scheduled for deployment on November 15th

2013, subject to successful completion

of all testing.

- SEM Release R2.4.0 (Proposed Deployment: April 2014)

The release cut-off date for the April 2014 release to the Central Market Systems was September 27th

,

2013.


A number of Change Requests have been sent to our vendors for impact assessment. A meeting of the

Change Control Forum (CCF) will be held on October 23rd

at which the scope for this release will be

discussed.

Subsequent to the CCF meeting a release scope proposal will be issued to the Regulatory Authorities

for approval. On receipt of Regulatory approval the scope will be published to the industry.

2.3 Modification Management The tables that follow give an overview of the activity that has taken place between 1

st Oct 2012 and

30th

Sept 2013. Table 4 and Table 5 show the dates and number of Modifications Committee Meetings

that took place over this period.

Meeting Date Location

45 24th October 2012 Belfast

46 5th December 2012 Dublin

47 12th February 2013 Belfast

48 11th April 2013 Dublin

49 13th June 2013 Belfast

50 15th August 2013 Dublin

Table 4: Modifications Committee Meetings

Modification Committee

Meetings

Q1

2012

Q2

2012

Q3

2012

Q4

2012 Total

Scheduled meetings 2 1 2 1 6

Other meetings 0 0 0 0 0

Working Groups 1 0 0 0 1

Table 5: Modification Committee Meetings & Working Groups

At the Modifications Committee Meetings, decisions are made to progress Modification Proposals.

Table 6 and Figure 1 give an outline of the amount of activity that has taken place in each quarter.

Modification Proposal Activity Q1

2013

Q2

2013

Q3

2013

Q4

2013 Total

Raised 7 4 4 2 17

Alternative Versions raised 2 1 1 1 5

Withdrawn 0 0 0 0 0

Deferred 4 4 3 4 15

Extension Granted 0 1 1 1 3

Recommended for Approval 9 3 4 0 16

Recommended for Rejection 0 0 0 0 0

Further Work Required 0 0 0 1 1

Approved 3 7 2 2 14

Rejected 0 0 0 0 0

Table 6: Modification Proposal Activity


Figure 1 - Modifications Committee Activity

Finally, Table 7 and Figure 2 show the progress made on all the Modification Proposals submitted

since the beginning of the SEM in November 2007 and their status at the end of each quarter.

Modification Proposal Status

End

Q1

2013

End

Q2

2013

End

Q3

2013

End

Q4

2013

Raised 315 319 323 325

Withdrawn 46 46 46 46

Deferred 4 5 3 6

Recommended for Rejection 0 0 0 0

Recommended for Approval 7 3 4 1

Approved 6 13 2 4

Implemented 239 239 255 255

Rejected 13 13 13 13

Table 7: Modification Proposal Status at end of each Quarter

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Modifications Committee Activity 1st Oct 2012 - 30th Sept 2013

Q1 2013

Q2 2013

Q3 2013

Q4 2013


Figure 2 - Status of Modification Proposals from 1st November 2007 to 30

th Sept 2013

2.3.1 Publication of the Trading & Settlement Code

Trading & Settlement Code and Agreed Procedures Version 13.0, were published on the SEMO

website on 10th

May 2013 in line with the CMS release. Sixteen effective Modifications were included

in the version.

2.3.2 2013 Modifications Committee Elections

Modifications Committee Annual Elections started in June with a call for nominations for four

expiring positions on the Modifications Committee. The election process ran throughout July and was

completed in advance of Modifications Committee Meeting 50 on 15th

August 2013. The results are

set out in Table 8 below.

Expired Member New Member Position

Caitríona Diviney, IWEA Mary Doorly, IWEA Generator

Kevin Hannafin, Viridian Kevin Hannafin, Viridian Generator

Jill Murray, Bord Gáis Jill Murray, Bord Gáis Supplier

William Steele, Power NI William Steele, Power NI Supplier

Table 8 - Modifications Committee Elections

The election for Chair and Vice-Chair took place in August with both Iain Wright (Airtricity) and Jill

Murray (Bord Gáis) re-elected to the positions of Chair and Vice-Chair respectively.

2.4 Modifications Process Development

Modification Proposals were considered at bimonthly Modifications Committee Meetings alternating

between Belfast and Dublin.


Full details of all modifications progressed during the year are available in the Modifications section

of the SEMO website. Summaries of some of the more significant Modification Proposals progressed

are presented below.

- Mod_11_12: Proposal to extend the definition of Special Units to include Compressed Air

Energy Storage (CAES)

This proposal, raised by Gaelectric at Meeting 42 sought extension of the definition of Special Units to

include CAES. The second meeting of the Working Group took place on 23rd

October 2012. Gaelectric

Energy Storage (GES) presented slides expanding on the options put forward at the first Working

Group (held on 6th

September).

Three options were developed by GES:

Option 1 – Full Price Making Storage

Existing Pumped Storage rules modified to include submission of Commercial Offer Data

and consideration of Constraint Payments

PQ Pairs submitted for Pumping and Generation, No Load and Start-Up Costs

Option 2 – Availability Feasible Storage Unit

Similar to an Interconnector Unit with offers submitted as a Predictable Price Maker

PQ Pairs submitted for negative storage (pumping) and adjusted during Trading Periods to

reflect available storage for Generation

Capacity Payments subject to energy limit

Option 3 – Linked Energy Limited Generator

Split Unit where pumping treated as Predictable Price Taker separate to Generation Unit,

which acts as a Energy Limited Predictable Price Maker

The group agreed that options 1 and 2 should be further developed. GES agreed to forward additional

details about the second option to the Secretariat for circulation to Working Group participants. An

action was placed on SEMO to initiate impact assessments for options 1 and 2 upon receipt of

additional information from GES.

SEMO received additional information from GES which was issued to ABB for impact assessment.

This modification was deferred at Meeting 46 held on Dec 6th

. The third meeting of the Working

Group took place on 23rd

January 2013.

SEMO presented the IA results for both options. The first option Full Price Making Storage was

assessed based on two sub-options; 1(a) Pumped Storage Unit with Commercial Offer Data and 1(b)

Pumped Storage Unit with Commercial Offer Data and a Pumped Storage Cycle Efficiency which is a

function of output rather than constant. The second option, New Unit with similar logic to

Interconnector Units, was discussed at length with the vendor. However, the vendor felt that it would

not fit well into the existing system architecture. While there was a consensus among WG members

that 1(b) was the preferred option if this proposal were to be implemented in the current market, it was

noted that the impacts on RCUC and relevant operational issues have not yet been assessed; it was felt

that this assessment would need to take place to complete the impact assessment.

At Meeting 47 on 12th

February 2013, an update regarding the progress of the objectives and

deliverables of the Terms of Reference of the Working Group was delivered to the Modifications

Committee. The Modification Proposal was deferred pending the outcome of a RCUC Impact

Assessment.. There was widespread recognition that the market will evolve in 2016 and that the work

completed on the proposal should go towards facilitating such a unit for future market arrangements.

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_11_12%20Gaelectric.docx


At Meeting 48, an update was given to the Modifications Committee advising that the TSO met with

GES regarding the procurement of the impact assessment on RCUC.

Committee consensus was for a proposal status of Deferred Dormant, only discussing the proposal at a

Meeting when there is a relevant update. The RCUC impact assessment is currently in progress with

an extension granted by the RAs until 18th

October 2013, pending completion of the impact

assessment.

- Mod_20_12 Timelines in relation to the scheduling of Ad Hoc Resettlement following an

upheld Query

This modification was raised by SEMO to improve the management of ad hoc resettlement, where a

large proportion of resettlement occurs together.

An alternative version of the proposal was developed by SEMO to address the issue of open-

endedness of timings with regard to ad hoc resettlement and was submitted for Meeting 46 where it

was approved. The AP Notification was published on the SEMO website with an effective date of 24th

December 2012.

- Mod_21_12: Amendment to Available Transfer Capacity (ATC) definition

This proposal was raised by the TSOs to allow them to curtail the flow on the Interconnector should an

unforeseen Interconnector or transmission system event occur. The alternative version of the proposal

was discussed by the Committee at Extraordinary Meeting 45. The proposal had been altered from the

original version, now permitting the TSO to change transfer capacity only prior to EA1, before any

trade has been established in the SEM. The proposal was recommended for approval at the meeting

and the FRR was issued to the RAs for final decision on 21st November 2012.

On 12th

August 2013, a decision was received from the RAs requesting that further work be carried out

on the FRR. The decision was discussed at Meeting 50 where the RAs requested that further clarity

within the FRR be provided, in relation to:

The underlying rationale for the proposal

The risks of not implementing the proposal and the alternatives that were considered

The commercial effects of any curtailment of IC flows

Discrimination introduced in the proposal against IC Users and IC Owners

The TSO provided an updated FRR addressing the above issues, for circulation to the Modifications

Committee. The FRR will be re-issued to the RAs for final decision.

- Mod_22_12: Administered Scheduling for General System Failure

This modification was raised by SEMO to allow the MO to set MIUNs to zero in the case of a General

Systems Failure. This is necessary to account for the situation where the Central Market System is

unavailable, yet the Market Operator has an obligation to produce MIUNs for Interconnector trading

day ahead and within day. SEMO developed alternative wording for this proposal at the request of the

Committee. It was recommended for approval at Modifications Meeting 46. The effective date of the

proposal was 6th

February 2013.

- Mod_23_12 Minimum Stable Generation Correction

Mod_23_12 was required to resolve a number of conflicts in the definition of Min Stable Generation,

some of which were noted during the certification process.

This modification further amends the Glossary definition of Minimum Stable Generation that was

amended in Mod_42_10v2 to ensure that the definition is not too narrow to exclude Ex-Ante

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_11_12%20Gaelectric.docx


references to Minimum Stable Generation. An alternative version of the proposal was submitted for

Meeting 47 on 12 February 2013 where it was recommended for approval by the Modifications

Committee. The effective date was 20th

March 2013.

- Mod_24_12: Amendments to the MIUN Calculator to Address Instances of Excessive

Area

Extraordinary Meeting 45 was called by the Chairman of the Modifications Committee following

advice by SEMO that there was an existing issue with the MIUN calculator. The issue, known as

“Extreme Ramping” was identified during testing following the implementation of Intra-Day Trading.

Prior to this modification, under the T&SC, previously determined MIUNs might not be fixed if there

was a change in ATC or if the net Interconnector flow was within Deadband limits. In this additional

scenario, which is characterised by the Interconnector profile being constrained by the Interconnector

Ramp Rate, ramping over multiple Trading Periods and a change in the dominant direction of ramping

between gates, previous MIUNs may also not be held fixed.

Although this scenario has never occurred in live operations to date, the MO deemed it prudent to raise

a Modification Proposal to provide a solution should an Extreme Ramping situation ever occur. The

solution will ensure that in all cases previously determined MIUNs will be fixed, a feasible

Interconnector profile will be produced and MIUNs will be less than or equal to IUNs. The proposal,

an Agreed Procedure Modification Proposal, received unanimous approval by the Committee at

Extraordinary Meeting 45. The AP Notification was published advising that the Modification Proposal

would become effective on the date the vendor confirms with the Market Operator to be the earliest

date in which the change can be implemented in the Market Systems. The proposal was made effective

on 3rd

May 2013.

- Mod_25_12: Suspension of Interconnector Unit on instruction of Interconnector Owner

due to breach of Access Rules

This proposal raised by the Interconnector Owners, proposed to allow the interconnector owner to

request that the Market Operator can suspend an interconnector unit if it no longer meets the eligibility

requirements or is in breach of the interconnector access rules. It was deferred at Modifications

Meeting 46, with an action placed on Participants to issue comments or issues related to the proposal

by 11th

January 2013. At Meeting 48 an action was placed on the proposers to monitor the issue and

revert to the Committee with an update in 6 months. An extension was granted by the RAs until 31st

January 2014.

- Mod_26_12: Notification Time for updating Interconnector Technical Data

This modification, raised by the Interconnector Administrator, changes the current 29 day timeline for

notification of changes to interconnector technical data back to its original value of 5 days. It was

recommended for approval at Modifications Meeting 46 subject to legal drafting changes. The AP

Notification was published on the SEMO website with an effective date of 21st December 2012.

- Mod_27_12: Representation of Price Takers in the MSP Software

This modification, raised by SEMO, arose from certification of the MSP Software and concerns the

individual representation of price takers in the MSP Software. The Code stated that these units were

not individually represented in the MSP Software when in fact they were. The proposal did not change

any calculations. It was recommended for approval at Modifications Meeting 46. The effective date of

the proposal was 11th

February 2013.

- Mod_28_12: Clarifications to Appendix N

This modification, raised by SEMO, corrects a number of inaccuracies in Appendix N in relation to

the definitions of Lower and Higher Operating Limits and the user of the term Availability. It was

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_24_12%20MIUN%20Excessive%20Area.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_25_12%20Suspension%20of%20IUs.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_25_12%20Suspension%20of%20IUs.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_26_12%20IC%20Technical%20Data%20changes.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_27_12%20Representation%20of%20Price%20Takers%20in%20the%20MSP%20Software.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_28_12%20Appendix%20N%20corrections.docx


recommended for approval at Modifications Meeting 46. The proposal was made effective on 6th

February 2013.

- Mod_29_12: Dwell Time Up & Dwell Time Down Glossary Definitions

This modification, raised by SEMO, introduces glossary definitions for Dwell Up and Dwell Down

times. It was recommended for approval at Modifications Meeting 46. The proposal was made

effective on 6th

February 2013.

- Mod_30_12: Improved Efficiencies in Unit Registration Process

This modification proposed to streamline the current unit registration process for units entering the

SEM as set out in AP1. The procedural steps define a single process which covers all aspects of a unit

registration including, inter alia, the Market Operator receiving an application, validation of the

application by the various parties involved and the unit becoming effective in the market. An

alternative version of the proposal was submitted for consideration at Meeting 48 where it was

approved. The proposal was made effective on Wednesday 24th

April.

- Mod_01_13: Enduring Provisions for Interconnector point of Connection

This modification proposed enduring changes to define the submission point of Interconnector related

quantities as being at the opposite end of the link to SEM. The interim provisions in Section 7 had

expired as of November 1st 2012. Mod_11_11, raised in 2011 proposed similar enduring changes, but

the RA decision at the time was to once again extend the Section 7 provisions pending the outcome of

FUI discussions.

The proposal was Recommended for Approval at Meeting 47 and was subsequently approved by the

RAs, with an effective date of 5th March 2013.

- Mod_02_13: Registration of Charges

This modification originally proposed the removal of the obligation to register a charge over the

Collateral Reserve Accounts as a result of Participants not being compliant with the obligation to

register charges over the SEM Collateral Reserve Accounts. The proposal also sought to reduce the

substantial administrative work involved on the part of the MO in seeking to register charges over

Collateral Reserve Accounts of Participants in Ireland and in the UK or Northern Ireland.

Furthermore, where the Participant is incorporated in a country other than Ireland or the UK further

legal difficulties arise. This issue has been further exacerbated with the introduction of EWIC where a

number of Participants are incorporated in jurisdictions other than Ireland or the UK. Registering a

charge in another European jurisdiction has proven challenging for the MO.

The Modifications Committee sought independent legal support on the impacts of the proposal, with

part of the advices subcontracted to a NI firm. Following procurement of the legal advice, SEMO is on

an interim basis, proceeding to review and revise the current draft Deed of Charge and requesting the

relevant Participants to deliver duly executed deeds. EirGrid Legal and McCann Fitzgerald have been

in discussion in relation to the revision of the current Deed of Charge, so as to ensure the security of

the 29 collateral accounts which were transferred from Northern Bank to Danske Bank London.

The legal advisers are currently re-drafting the Modification Proposal and carrying out a legal review.

- Mod_04_13: Process for changing the VAT Jurisdiction of an Interconnector Unit

Mod_03_12 Alignment of TSC with revised VAT arrangements became effective on May 10th 2013.

As a result of this change, the jurisdiction of the Interconnector Units of three existing Interconnector

Users also changed on May 10th, which was in the middle of a billing period for Capacity. (The

Central Market System is unable to process settlement for a portion of the month allocated to one VAT

jurisdiction and the remaining portion allocated to another VAT jurisdiction. In order to account for

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_29_12%20Definition%20of%20Dwell%20Time%20Up%20and%20Dwell%20Time%20Down.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_30_12%20-%20AP1%20changes%20(3).docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_01_13_IC%20Point%20of%20Connection.docx

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_02_13%20Registration%20of%20Charges%20Submitted.doc


this change, it was necessary to issue the affected Interconnector Units with new Account IDs and

corresponding digital certificates. All relevant credit cover information was transferred to the new

Account IDs. This modification clarified the process that will apply. The proposal was submitted for

consideration at Meeting 48 where it was voted on. The proposal was made effective on Wednesday

24th April.

- Mod_07_13: Clarification regarding the rules for Instruction Profiling in Appendix O

This modification clarifies issues raised by the auditors in relation to Instruction Profiling in Appendix

O. As part of a previous modification, Mod_37_09v2, the text of O.11, which deals with the case

where multiple Dispatch Instructions with the same Instruction Effective Time but different

Instruction Issue Time are issued for a Generator Unit, was modified to state that the instructions

should be ranked in the stated order and the highest ranked dispatch instruction should be used. This

was identified by the auditors as being inaccurate.

The change proposes to revert to the original text which describes the instructions as being ordered in

such a case and reflects what happens in practice in the Instruction Profiler. In addition, the

modification added detail regarding the merging of wind instructions to Table O.2. The proposal was

discussed and Recommended for Approval at Meeting 49. The proposal became effective on 17 July

2013.

- Mod_08_13 : Amendment to number of days granted to the MO for the issuing of Party

Accession Deeds

This proposal was raised following the Market Audit where it was found that SEMO was in breach of

its obligation to sign and date an Accession Deed and send a copy to the Applicant within two

Working Days of receipt. The proposal proposes to extend the timeline to 15 Working Days, which is

in practice a more realistic timeline, given the number of signatories which must be co-ordinated.

The Committee agreed on a timeline of 10 Working Days as a more suitable timeline to be adopted.

The proposal was discussed and Recommended for Approval at Meeting 49. It was made effective on

Friday 28th June.

- Mod_09_13: Amendment of AP7 to include the use of e-mail notification and the SEMO

public website in the event of a GSF

This modification proposes to amend AP7 to include the use of the SEMO public website and market

message e-mail alerts to supplement the current emergency communication methods and reflect

current practice.

- Mod_10_13: Removal of Requirement for SOs to send certain Dispatch Instruction Codes

and Instruction Combination Codes for Pumped Storage Units to the MO

This modification proposes to no longer send the different Dispatch Instruction Codes and Instruction

Combination Codes which are used to differentiate between the different modes of operation of

Pumped Storage units. These instructions are not required by the Instruction Profiler to profile the

instructions into Dispatch Quantities in SEM, Therefore, the SOs propose that they are no longer sent

to the Market Operator.

http://www.sem-o.com/MarketDevelopment/ModificationDocuments/Mod_08_13%20Issuing%20of%20Accession%20Deed%20v2.docx


3 Service Delivery These metrics indicate how timely SEMO were in producing reports to Market Participants.

3.1 Core Market Operations Function Performance

SEMO is obligated on every day to close the market gate, issue ex-ante indicative schedules and run

indicative and initial pricing runs. Every working day SEMO is obliged to issue initial and indicative

settlement runs.

The following series of graphs shows the percentage of all reports issued in the last year by quarter

that were on time, late by less than an hour or late by over an hour. In summary most reports were

issued on time or within an hour of the required time. Where initial reports go out over an hour late

(infrequent) these still are delivered on the day (less than 3 hours late). Some indicative settlement

reports have not been published on the day scheduled. These were published late due to technical

issues, operational errors or delay in information from the data providers. The full details of the

reasons for the delays are provided in the Monthly Market Operator Reports.

Figure 3 - Overall Daily report publication

Gate closure is a significant market event as all bids and offers are required to be captured at that

point.


Figure 4 - Gate Closure performance

The initial Pricing and Settlement reports go out on a calendar and working day respectively. These

reports are used in the final settlement of the market.

Figure 5 - Initial Report Performance


Delays in publishing the indicative reports were due to delays in receiving input files from data

providers, system performance issues, or operational errors.

Figure 6 - Performance of Indicative Reports

3.2 Planned Re-Settlement M+4 & M+13

Resettlement occurred on time for the year as scheduled in the Settlement Calendar.

3.3 Ad-hoc Re-Pricing and Ad-hoc Resettlement Runs

12 Ad-hoc re-pricing runs were issued during Financial Year 2012/2013.

Trade date 18/04/2013 was as a result of incorrect Metered Demand.

Trade dates 15/11/2012, 16/11/2012 and 17/11/2012 were a result of incorrect Actual

Availability.

There were 8 re-prices due to a Pump Storage defect for M+13 Trade Dates 10/08/2012,

20/08/2012 and M+4 Trade Dates 11/05/2013, 13/05/2013, 15/05/2013, 24/05/2013,

29/05/2013 and 30/05/2013.

More detailed narratives of each of these events can be found in the Quarterly reports.

Ad-hoc Resettlements were carried out for 27 events. These were the result of incorrect Meter Data

submissions, incorrect Dispatch Instructions or Actual Availabilities being sent by the respective TSO,

operational errors by SEMO, as well as system defects.

More detailed narratives of each of these events can be found in the Quarterly reports.


3.4 Administration of Credit Cover

The SEM has been collateralised according to the T&SC provisions for the whole period from 1st

October 2012 to 30th September 2013. At times, the collateralisation may be slightly less than the

calculated requirement due to the time allowed by the T&SC for Participants to comply with a Credit

Cover Increase Notice (CCIN). All but two CCINs were fully honoured by Participants within the two

days allowed for in the T&SC, these, however, were received after the 17:00 deadline the same day.

Figure 7 - Market Collateralisation

Figure 8 - Credit Cover Increase Notice Amounts per Day


Figure 9 - Total Value of Credit Cover Increases by Participants

3.5 Breaches of the Trading and Settlement Code

SEMO is aware of 217 breaches of the T&SC in the period from 1st October 2012 to 30th September

2013. This is a reduction of 61 breaches from last year’s annual figure of 278 breaches. A breach of

the T&SC can range from minor issues like a late receipt of a data feed to major ones like payment

defaults leading to suspension from the Market. The breaches in financial year 2012/2013, were at the

lesser end of non compliance with no significant breach identified in the period.

In total, SEMO were responsible for 81 of the total breaches. This is a reduction of over 30% on last

year’s figure of 120 SEMO breaches. The key to this reduction has been an emphasis on

improvements in both system performance and mitigation of operational errors through training and

procedural changes. There were also 108 identified breaches by participants.

€0

€10,000,000

€20,000,000

€30,000,000

€40,000,000

€50,000,000

€60,000,000

€70,000,000

€80,000,000

€90,000,000

€100,000,000

€110,000,000

€120,000,000

€130,000,000

€140,000,000

€150,000,000

€160,000,000

Va

lue

of C

CIN

s

Participant

Q1 2012 Q2 2013 Q3 2013 Q4 2013


Figure 10- Number of Trading and Settlement Code Breaches

Figure 11 - Source of SEMO Trading and Settlement Code Breaches


4 Manage Stakeholders

4.1 Structured Approach to Regulatory interface

SEMO and the Regulatory Authorities have developed a good working relationship around a

number of formal interactions. The highlights of 2012-2013 are summarised below.

Bimonthly meetings continued and covered issues in relation to the Trading & Settlement Code

and the Market Operator obligations. The key issues addressed during this period include:

SEMO Revenue Control decision for October 2013-September 2016.

Reporting obligations – Quarterly and End of Year reporting on SEMO operations and

financials were issued throughout the year.

Annual publications and reports were delivered and published on time e.g. the Market

Operator Agreement.

Compliance - Market Operator and Trading & Settlement Code obligations on

compliance were reported on.

Market System Development Plan 5 was delivered in July 2013.


5 Provide Information The Trading and Settlement Code (T&SC) obligates SEMO to answer formal data and settlement

queries within a given timeframes. In financial year 2012/2013, SEMO has received 202 Formal

Queries; all were answered within the timelines prescribed under the T&SC. SEMO has requested

additional time, as allowed for under the TS&C, for only 2 of these. This is in line with requests made

in the previous financial year.

General queries have no prescribed timelines for response however SEMO aims to answer these

within 15 working days.

5.1 Customer Queries in a timely Manner

5.1.1 Query and Dispute Management:

Figure 12 - Number of Data Queries Submitted and Resolved up to 30th September 2013

Figure 13 - Number of Settlement Queries Submitted and Resolved up to 30th September 2013


Figure 14 - Number of General Queries Submitted and Resolved up to 30th September 2013

The general query volumes have decreased from 3643 submitted in the previous financial year, to

2749 submitted from October 2012 to September 2013 (difference of 894). A decrease of 795 can be

attributed to:

432 general queries submitted in the previous financial year were in relation to Intraday

Trading testing and release

363 requests to pay invoices using cash collateral accounts were received in the previous

financial year, during this period they were logged as general queries and assigned a Service

Level Agreement. Since October 2012 these requests are logged without a Service Level

Agreement, and are not included in the general query statistics

The remaining difference (99) can be attributed to a number of factors, such as:

Updates to the Frequently Asked Questions on the SEMO website

SEMO are proactively engaging with Participants through a number of forums to help reduce

the number of general queries submitted

A maturing market with less change implemented in the last financial year


Figure 15- Average Working Days to Answer Queries up to 30th September 2013

Further commentary on the Formal Queries is provided in section 6.1.

SEMO received 24 Formal Disputes between 1/10/12 and 30/09/13, 17 of which are still pending as of

November 6th

, 2013.


5.2 Facilitate and Educate participants to accede to the Code

Since 1st October 2012, the following participants have registered in the market.

Party ID Party Name / Participant Name Jurisdiction Effective Date

PY_000108 Carbon Sole Ltd ROI 02/10/2012

PY_000111 Empower Generation Limited NI 01/03/2013

PY_000112 Templederry Renewable Energy Supply Ltd ROI 01/03/2013

PY_000114 Electricity Exchange Limited ROI 19/04/2013

PY_000115 Aughrim Power Supply Limited ROI 14/06/2013

PY_000116 Panda Power Limited ROI 22/08/2013

PY_000119 Bruckana Wind Farm Limited ROI 12/09/2013

PY_000118 Bruckana Wind Farm Supply Limited ROI 12/09/2013

PY_000117 Mount Lucas Wind Farm Limited ROI 12/09/2013

PY_000120 Mount Lucas Supply Company Limited ROI 12/09/2013

PY_000121 Taurbeg Limited ROI 26/10/2013

PY_000122 Dalkia Alternative Energy Limited ROI 05/11/2013

PY_000124 Dunmore Wind Farm Limited NI 25/10/2013

PY_000123 LGLP Energy Supply Limited ROI 03/10/2013

PY_000113 Energy Trading Ireland NI 19/04/2013

Table 9 - Party Registrations

Since 1st October 2012, additional generation or supply units have been added to the following

participants.

Party ID Party Name/

Participant Name Jurisdiction Unit

Effective

Date

PY_000098 ElectroRoute Energy

Trading ROI

PT_400096_I_RIEWIC_ElectroRoute

Energy Trading 01/10/2012

PY_000100 RWE Supply &

Trading GmbH ROI

PT_400098_I_RIEWIC_RWE Supply &

Trading GmbH 01/10/2012

PY_000030 ESB PGEN EWIC ROI PT_400030_I_RIEWIC_ESB PGEN EWIC 01/10/2012

PY_000027 Bord Gáis ROI PT_400099_I_RIEWIC_Bord Gáis 01/10/2012

PY_000021 Airtricity Limited ROI PT_400021_I_RIEWIC_Airtricity Limited 01/10/2012

PY_000042 VESL EWIC ROI PT_400100_I_RIEWIC_VESL EWIC 01/10/2012

PY_000043

Ballycadden Wind

Farm Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411290_Ballycadden Wind Farm

Netting Generator Unit 17/10/2012

PY_000043 Ballycadden Wind

Farm ROI GU_401290_Ballycadden Wind Farm 17/10/2012

PY_000076 DAE Virtual Power

Plant ROI GU_411300_DAE Virtual Power Plant 23/10/2012


Plant ROI DSU_401300_DAE Virtual Power Plant 23/10/2012


Plant ROI SU_400154_DAE Virtual Power Plant 23/10/2012

PY_000056 AES Ballylumford

Limited GT1 NI

GU_500283_AES Ballylumford Limited

GT1 01/11/2012


PY_000056 AES Ballylumford

Limited GT2 NI

GU_500284_AES Ballylumford Limited

GT2 01/11/2012

PY_000070 AES Kilroot Power

Ltd GT1 NI GU_500824_AES Kilroot Power Ltd GT1 01/11/2012

PY_000070 AES Kilroot Power

Ltd GT2 NI GU_500825_AES Kilroot Power Ltd GT2 01/11/2012

PY_000028 Coolkeeragh ESB Ltd

GT8 NI GU_500041_Coolkeeragh ESB Ltd GT8 01/02/2013

PY_000043

Viridian Energy

Limited Domestic

Supplier

ROI SU_400155_Viridian Energy Limited

Domestic Supplier 21/05/2013

PY_000085 Carrickatane Netting

Generator Unit NI

GU_511190_Carrickatane Netting

Generator Unit 12/12/2012

PY_000085 Carrickatane Wind

Farm NI GU_501190_Carrickatane Wind Farm 12/12/2012

PY_000068

Garracummer Wind

Farm Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411310_Garracummer Wind Farm


PY_000068 Garracummer Wind

Farm Ltd ROI GU_401310_Garracummer Wind Farm Ltd 22/11/2012

PY_000027 Lisheen Netting

Generator Unit ROI

GU_411320_Lisheen Netting Generator

Unit 06/03/2013

PY_000027 Lisheen WindFarm II

Ltd ROI GU_401320_Lisheen WindFarm II Ltd 06/03/2013

PY_000067 Galeforce Energy

Supply ROI SU_400157_Galeforce Energy Supply 04/04/2013

PY_000031

Carn hill Wind farm

Netting Generator

Unit

NI GU_511210_Carn hill Wind farm Netting


PY_000031 Carn Hill Windfarm NI GU_501210_Carn Hill Windfarm 18/04/2013

PY_000103 Danske Commodities

A/S ROI

PT_400108_I_RIEWIC_Danske

Commodities A/S 12/05/2013

PY_000043

Gibbet Hill Windfarm

Netting Generator

Unit

ROI GU_411340_Gibbet Hill Windfarm Netting


PY_000043 Gibbet Hill Windfarm ROI GU_401340_Gibbet Hill Windfarm 13/02/2013

PY_000110 Burren Energy Supply

Limited ROI SU_400159_Burren Energy Supply Limited 08/08/2013

PY_000110

Knocknagoum

Windfarm Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411350_Knocknagoum Windfarm


PY_000110 Knocknagoum

Windfarm Limited ROI

GU_401350_Knocknagoum Windfarm

Limited 08/08/2013

PY_000043

Ballycadden Wind

Farm Phase 2 Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411360_Ballycadden Wind Farm Phase

2 Netting Generator Unit 27/03/2013

PY_000043 Ballycadden Wind

Farm Phase 2 ROI

GU_401360_Ballycadden Wind Farm Phase

2 27/03/2013

PY_000027

Smithstown Windfarm

Limited Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411370_Smithstown Windfarm

Limited Netting Generator Unit 26/06/2013

PY_000027 Ballymartin Windfarm

Phase 2 ROI

GU_401370_Ballymartin Windfarm Phase

2 26/06/2013


PY_000021

Athea Wind Farm

Netting Generator

Unit

ROI GU_411380_Athea Wind Farm Netting


PY_000021 Athea Wind Farm ROI GU_401380_Athea Wind Farm 15/08/2013

PY_000100 RWE Supply &

Trading GmbH ROI

PT_400113_I_RIEWIC_RWE Supply &

Trading GmbH 12/05/2013

PY_000098 ElectroRoute Energy

Trading Ltd NI

PT_500069_I_NIMOYLE_ElectroRoute

Energy Trading Ltd 12/05/2013

PY_000103 Danske Commodities

A/S NI

PT_500070_I_NIMOYLE_Danske

Commodities A/S 12/05/2013

PY_000071

SSE Generation

Ireland Limited -

Interconnector Unit

NI PT_500072_I_NIMOYLE_SSE Generation

Ireland Limited - Interconnector Unit 23/10/2013

PY_000043

Viridian Eeergy

Supply Limited -

EWIC

ROI PT_400115_I_RIEWIC_Viridian Eeergy

Supply Limited - EWIC 12/05/2013

PY_000027 Ballymartin Wind

Farm Phase 1 ROI

GU_401410_Ballymartin Wind Farm Phase

1 03/10/2013

PY_000092 Fuinneamh Gaoithe

Teoranta - Supply Unit ROI

SU_400162_Fuinneamh Gaoithe Teoranta -

Supply Unit 09/10/2013

PY_000115 Aughrim Power

Supply Limited ROI

SU_400163_Aughrim Power Supply

Limited 30/10/2013

PY_000102 Endesa Generación

MOYLE NI

PT_500071_I_NIMOYLE_Endesa

Generación MOYLE 23/10/2013

PY_000027

Booltiagh 2 Wind

Farm Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411420_Booltiagh 2 Wind Farm


PY_000027 Booltiagh 2 Wind

Farm ROI GU_401420_Booltiagh 2 Wind Farm 18/09/2013

PY_000027

Booltiagh WF 1

Netting Generator

Unit

ROI GU_411430_Booltiagh WF 1 Netting


PY_000027 Booltiagh Wind Farm

1 ROI GU_401430_Booltiagh Wind Farm 1 18/09/2013

PY_000032

Gort Windfarm Ltd

(Derrybrien) Netting

Generator Unit

ROI GU_411440_Gort Windfarm Ltd

(Derrybrien) Netting Generator Unit 01/08/2013

PY_000032 Derrybrien Wind Farm ROI GU_401440_Derrybrien Wind Farm 01/07/2013

Table 10 - Unit Registrations

Since 1st October 2012, the following participants have de-registered or had a unit change its status in

the market.

Party ID Party Name /

Participant Name

Type of

Registration Jurisdiction Generation or Supply

Effective

Date

PY_000022 Airtricity ES NI Ltd Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_500010 - Tappaghan

Wind Farm 11/10/2012

PY_000085 Hunters Hill

Windfarm Limited

Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_501150 - Curryfree


PY_000034 Power NI Energy Ltd

(PPB) De-Registration NI

GU_500080 - KGT1

(Kilroot Gas Turbine 1) 01/11/2012



GU_500090 - KGT2

(Kilroot Gas Turbine 2) 01/11/2012


Party ID Party Name /

Participant Name

Type of

Registration Jurisdiction Generation or Supply

Effective

Date



GU_500150 - BGT1

(Bullylumford Gas

Turbine 1)

01/11/2012



GU_500160 - BGT2

(Bullylumford Gas

Turbine 2)

01/11/2012

PY_000021 Airtricity Ltd

Generation

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_400591 - Coomacheo

Windfarm Phase 1 06/11/2012


Generation

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_400600 - Tournafulla

2 12/12/2012


Generation

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI GU_400920 - Dromada 08/01/2013

PY_000043 Viridian Energy

Limited

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI GU_401150 - Bawnmore 22/01/2013



GU_500170 - CGT8

(Coolkeeragh Gas Turbine

8)

01/02/2013


Generation

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_400910 - Boggeragh

Windfarm 22/02/2013

PY_000095 Indaver Energy Ltd Changed from

PPMG to PPTG ROI

GU_401230 - Indaver

Energy 12/03/2013

PY_000105 Crighshane Energy

Limited

Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_501180 - Crighshane


PY_000022 Airtricity ES NI Ltd Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_500740 - Slieve

Divena Wind Farm 06/06/2013

PY_000063 SWS Green Energy

Generation

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_400731 -

Coomagearlahy Wind farm 12/06/2013

PY_000089 Saporito Limited De-Registration ROI GU_401110 - Anarget

Windfarm Phase 1 01/07/2013

PY_000089 Saporito Limited De-Registration ROI GU_401111 - Anarget

Hydro Unit 1 01/07/2013

PY_000091 AWC Limited De-Registration ROI GU_401130 - Spion Kop

Mine Windfarm Phase 1 01/07/2013

PY_000046 ESB Independent

Energy (ROI) Ltd

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_400630 -

Knockawarriga Wind

Farm

17/07/2013

PY_000031 ESB Independent

Energy NI

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_501210 - Carn Hill


PY_000030 ESB AER De-Registration ROI GU_400440 - Derrybrien


PY_000104 Church Hill Energy

Limited

Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_501170 - Church Hill

Wind farm 12/09/2013

PY_000030 ESB AER De-Registration ROI GU_400420 - Booltiagh

Wind Farm 1 18/09/2013

PY_000027 Bord Gais Windfarms

(ROI)

Changed from

APTG to VPTG ROI

GU_401320 - Lisheen

Wind Farm Phase 2 19/09/2013

PY_000074 Gruig Wind Farm

Limited

Changed from

APTG to VPTG NI

GU_500790 - Gruig Wind

Farm 19/09/2013

Table 11 - Deregistrations or Changes of Status


5.3 Facilitate Interaction with Customers

5.3.1 Stakeholder Events

SEMO is proactive in interaction with its stakeholders. In the past 12 months SEMO have:

Organised, facilitated and presented in:

o 6 Market Operator User Groups (MOUGs)

Facilitated Participant Readiness calls for new Market Participants

Carried out 3 Welcome to the Market Training Sessions for new Participants

Organised 1 special topic workshop to discuss proposed registration changes

Bilateral meetings/training sessions with Participants and stakeholders on specific topics

including Electroroute, ESB, Vayu, NIE T&D, MRSO, Coilte, Regulators

A series of conference calls and workshops as part of the SEM R2.2.0 Release Testing

Hosted delegation from UCD Energy Conference

Presented to a delegation from the Oman Market Operator & Regulator

Presented to a delegation from Vietnam Market Operator & Regulator (August 21st 2013)

Hosted a delegation from the Vietnam Market Operator and Regulator for two weeks in

September

SEMO also took part in visits by the Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam and

Gridco of Ghana


6 SEM Review

6.1 Formal Queries

Since Market go live in Nov 2007, SEM has observed a continuing reduction in the volume of queries

submitted by Participants. This was until financial year 2011/2012 where the number of Formal

Queries started to increase again as shown in Figure 16 below.

Figure 16 – Number of Formal Data and Settlement Queries Received per Year

This is due to a series of major releases that have happened in that period including Global

Aggregation NI, MIUN calculator and Intra-Day Trading (IDT). Issues derived from those releases

have contributed to the increase of formal queries received in the previous and current year. Compared

to the previous year there has been no increase in the number of Data Queries submitted and 25

additional Settlement Queries. This results in an overall increase of 14% from the previous year.

Details are included in Table 15 below.

YEAR DATA SETTLEMENT TOTAL % CHANGE

2007/2008 209 418 627 -

2008/2009 122 322 444 -29%

2009/2010 62 190 252 -43%

2010/2011 25 95 120 -52%

2011/2012 47 130 177 48%

2012/2013 47 155 202 14%

Table 12 - Formal Data and Settlement Queries Received

The breakdown of the reasons behind Data Queries received is shown in Figure 17 below.

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

2007/2008 2008/2009 2009/2010 2010/2011 2011/2012 2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

s

Financial Year

DATA SETTLEMENT


Figure 17 - Data Queries by subject matter

Over half of the queries referred to issues with Availability, with all other eleven topics only featuring

in one or two instances; the seven queries on Technical Offer Data (TOD), all refer to the same

participant and to an issue with the TOD approval process that affected a number of consecutive dates,

which were all queried individually. The majority of the queries on Availability, as shown in Figure 18

below, have not been upheld, the values being confirmed by the relevant TSO; however, some of them

have been turned into disputes which are still outstanding.

Figure 18 - Responses on Most Queried Item in Data Queries– Availability

With regards to Settlement queries Figure 19 below show the breakdown for financial year 2012/2013:

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

s

Availability

Commercial Offer Data

Dispatch Instructions

Instruction Profil ing

Interconnector

Metered Demand

Metered Generation

MGEU

MSQ

Payment Calculation

Report

Technical Offer Data

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

s

Input Confirmed Input Error


Figure 19 - Settlement Queries by subject matter

The two most common Settlement Queries received were on Availability and Metered Generation.

This is in contrast to previous years where Instruction Profiling or Dispatch Instructions where the

most common. Figure 20 shows that in the case of the most recurrent queried item, Availability, the

vast majority (83%) were upheld. The issues were mostly due to incorrect data being sent to the SEM.

There were four queries related to issues resulting from a single operational error affecting four dates.

Figure 20 - Responses on Most Queried Item in Settlement Queries– Availability

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

sAvailabilityCapacity SettlementCommercial Offer DataCurrency CostDispatch InstructionsDOG-PUGEligible AvailabiltyInstruction ProfilingInterconnectorLoss Adjustment FactorsMetered DemandMetered GenerationMGEUMOCPayment CalculationRejectedReportResettlementSO-SO TradeTechnical Offer DataUnder Test

0

5

10

15

20

25

2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

s

Input Confirmed Input Error Operational Error


The overall trend for all Formal queries since Market go live, confirms that the number of spurious

queries has diminished and that queries not upheld now represent a minority of received queries.

Figure 21 – Upheld/Not Upheld Formal Queries

Figure 22 below show that of all not upheld queries, 23% of them are withdrawn, rejected or raised

with an incorrect understanding of the Market rules.

Figure 22 –Formal Queries Not Upheld by response type

The following two graphs in Figure 23 and Figure 24 show the response times for Data and Settlement

Queries over the previous two years. Queries continue to be responded to within the required timelines

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

DA

TA

SETT

LEM

ENT

2007/2008 2008/2009 2009/2010 2010/2011 2011/2012 2012/2013

N.o

f Q

ue

rie

s

Query Types by Financial Year

Upheld

Not Upheld

0

5

10

15

20

25

DATA SETTLEMENT

2012/2013

N.o

f Que

ries

Withdrawn

Understanding

Rejected

Output Confirmed

Input Confirmed


set out in the Trading & Settlement Code1. In Figure 23 it can be observed that only a small number of

extensions (two) have been requested for Data Queries in the current financial year. Requests for 10

Day extensions to the timeline were heavily used in the first years of market operations. Response time

continue to be below the T&SC maximum allowed, with the majority of queries answered within the

first three working days of being received.

Figure 23 – Response Times for Data Queries

The same is shown in Figure 24 below for Settlement Queries. There was no query extended in the

observed period and queries have been responded, in the majority of cases, within the first five

working days of being received.

Figure 24 - Response Times for Settlement Queries

1 Please note that graph shows number of actual days instead of working days; this explains how some queries seems to

exceed the T&SC timelines. This is particularly evident in the Data Query graph as a number of queries were responded

after the Christmas break.

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

0 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 15 16 17 0 1 2 3 4 5 7 11 12 13 14 16 20 25

2011/2012 2012/2013

N.o

f Que

ries

Response time in days for Data Queries

Not Extended Extended

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

0 2 4 6 8 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 29 31 37 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 28 30

2011/2012 2012/2013

N.o

f Que

ries

Response time in days for Settlement Queries

Not Extended Extended


6.2 Market Review

Figure 25 below shows the summed Daily Generator Availability and the Load Weighted Average

System Marginal Price across the whole financial year.

The Availability overall has increased; however, sharp decreases can be seen as large units outages

coincided with periods of Interconnector outage between February and March 2013. This, coupled

with a period of unseasonal low temperatures and substantial increase in fuel costs on the International

Market, has resulted in higher System Marginal Price (SMP) for the period. SMP has since returned to

more stable values. A report published by SEMO in May 2013, provides more details on SMP increase

over the period February/March 20132.

Initial indications are that the introduction of further interconnection has put downward pressure on

SMP. This will be further detailed in section 6.3.1.

Due to the impact of the higher prices around March 2013, overall average SMP was slightly higher

than the previous year, and more volatile: the daily average volume weighted SMP was €64.9 in

financial year 2012 compared to €69.6 in 2013.

Figure 25 – Daily Total Availability and Volume Weighted Average SMP

When the Load Weighted SMP is compared against Metered Demand as in Figure 26 below, we can

see that the Demand is still at full winter level until the end of March due to the exceptionally cold

weather. The Demand curve is otherwise similar to the previous year with more volatility throughout

the year.

2 ‘Frequency of Market Operator Solver Policy Use (January to March 2013)’ available on the SEM-O website at:

http://www.sem-o.com/Publications/General/Frequency%20of%20Market%20Operator%20Solver%20Policy%20Use%20-

%20Jan%20to%20March%202013.pdf

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

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Dai

ly A

ctu

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vaila

bili

ty (

MW

)

Syst

em

Mar

gin

al P

rice

(€

/MW

h)

Total Daily Actual Availability Volume Weighted Daily SMP

http://www.sem-o.com/Publications/General/Frequency%20of%20Market%20Operator%20Solver%20Policy%20Use%20-%20Jan%20to%20March%202013.pdf

http://www.sem-o.com/Publications/General/Frequency%20of%20Market%20Operator%20Solver%20Policy%20Use%20-%20Jan%20to%20March%202013.pdf


Figure 26 –Total Daily Metered Demand and Volume Weighted Daily SMP

Figure 27 compares the total monthly metered Demand values for each year since 2008. Demand level

for financial year 2012 and 2013 were on a par with the previous year or increasing slightly throughout

the year, with small reductions only in the month of May and June.

Figure 27 – Total Monthly Metered Demand, Jan 2008 to Sept 2013 Comparison

Throughout the year variations in Demand and Availability of plants, lead to significant changes in

Margin. When Margin is compared to Load Weighted Average SMP, it is clearly visible how the SMP

is inversely affected by the Margin. Similarly to previous years, a pattern is discernible in Figure 28.

0

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Tota

l Dem

and

(MW

)

Syst

em M

argi

nal

Pric

e (€

/MW

h)

Total Daily Demand Volume Weighted Daily SMP

0

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Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Met

ered

Dem

and

(MW

h)


Figure 28 - Average Margin and Volume Weighted SMP

Figure 29 below shows the average daily SMP values by Trading Periods for the whole financial year

from October 1st 2012 to September 30

th 2013 for the three main run types. Similar to previous years

the runs on average converge closely for most of the day with small variances concentrated over the

morning and the evening peaks.

Figure 29 - Average Daily SMP from 1st Oct 2012 to 30

th Sep 2013

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Ave

rage

Dai

ly M

argi

n (

MW

)

Syst

em

Mar

gin

al P

rice

(€

/MW

h)

Daily Volume Weighted SMP Average Daily Margin

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1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Ave

rage

SM

P p

er

Trad

ing

Pe

rio

d (€

/MW

h)

EA EP1 EP2


Figure 30 below illustrates how the EA2 and WD1 compare with the EA and, again, only very small

variations are observed over the morning and evening peak

Figure 30 - Average SMP by TP from 22nd

July 2012 to 30th

Sep 2012(IDT runs)

6.3 Other Studies and Work

6.3.1 Analysis of the Impact of EWIC Full Operation on SMP

SEMO has carried out an analysis of how the SMP has been impacted by the new East West

Interconnector (EWIC) coming into full operation.

This initial study was limited to the first two months of EWIC being operational at full capacity (May

to June 2013); however, SEMO plans to continue the analysis for a larger period of time to confirm the

results obtained.

The study has shown that when EWIC was made unavailable, SMP increased overall by 7% which

represent an average of 5€/MWh per Trade Day, compared to having EWIC available up to its

maximum capacity of 500MW. Production Costs also increased for all Trading days in the study,

when EWIC was made unavailable.

6.3.2 Guarantees of Origin and Fuel Mix Disclosure

SEMO is the issuing body of Guarantees of Origin (GO) in Ireland. SEMO began registering

interested parties for the scheme in December 2011 and registration has been open to eligible

Generators since; to date 81 Generators and 7 Suppliers have registered. For the production year 2013

to date, 1,104,387 GO Certificates have been issued. GO certificates are issued on a quarterly basis.

Trading of European certificates has also taken place with 850,955 imported for the production year

2012; this marks a significant increase on the 101,000 certificates imported for the production year

2011.

The Fuel Mix Disclosure Enduring Solution is a separate annual project linked to Guarantees of

Origin. SEMO is the calculating body for the Fuel Mix Disclosure of both Ireland and Northern

Ireland. The disclosure calculation for 2011 was the first year that the enduring solution was in place;

this meant that Suppliers could declare GOs in their Fuel Mix submissions. This method is being used

going forward. Suppliers have received their fuel mix breakdowns and a final publication of the data

by the Regulatory Authorities has been completed for the 2012 calculation.

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1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Ave

rage

SM

P pe

r Tra

ding

Per

iod

(€/M

Wh)

EA EA2 WD1