EURELECTRIC tells London Forum how distributors can simplify switching processes for customers
“Customers should be able to switch suppliers within three weeks. A smooth information exchange based on compatible electronic data formats and standardised interface between suppliers and distributors (DSOs) is crucial to make this happen,” Petter Sandoy, Chairman of EURELECTRIC’s Working Group Distribution Customers & Operation, told the Citizens’ Energy Forum in London yesterday. EURELECTRIC will continue to stress distributors’ importance in facilitating customer engagement at the Forum today.
Over the past few months, EURELECTRIC has investigated the central role of distributors in the present supplier switching processes in Europe. The main three findings were presented yesterday at the London Forum, a two-day energy retail markets stakeholder forum organised by the European Commission.
- The switching procedure: To ensure a smooth switching process for customers, the new supplier should be the single point of contact, with the DSO acting as a neutral market facilitator.
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IT supporting infrastructure: Communication between suppliers and DSO should take place through standardised data formats and include an agreed minimum of information.
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Quality of the procedure: Timely exchange and treatment of data is essential to ensure a smooth switching process. Remote automated meter reading will be the main key to cost-effective market facilitation.
Market participants need to have a clear idea of what kind of information is to be exchanged and how this should be done. “Flawless communication between the system operator and suppliers is essential to the functioning of the entire switching process,” Mr Sandoy argued. As the binding link between the old and new supplier, DSOs are ideally placed to deliver the necessary interoperability that will benefit customers: minimal technical standards and well defined data formats guarantee that critical information can be shared efficiently and swiftly.
In addition, smart meters are integral to getting demand-side participation right. “Smart metering, in the hands of neutral DSOs, will significantly improve the accuracy, efficiency and speed of data exchange between market actors, system operators and customers,” Mr Sandoy stressed. Indeed, they could increase customers’ awareness of their energy consumption, an essential prerequisite if they are to become more active in energy retail markets.
As the Forum continues today, EURELECTRIC will present its further views on demand response, as outlined in the respective EURELECTRIC paper. Per Hallberg, Chairman of EURELECTRIC’s Working Group Smart Grids, and Pauline Lawson, Member of EURELECTRIC’s Taskforce Smart Grids, Flexible Loads and Storage, will declare that “enhanced demand-side participation is needed to provide additional flexibility to the benefit of the electricity system – and, most importantly, to the benefit of customers.”