S.I. No. 406/2007 - Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (Single Electricity Market) Regulations 2007

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (Single Electricity Market) Regulations 2007

The Commission for Energy Regulation, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by section 9BA(2) of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (No. 23 of 1999) (inserted by section 7 of the Electricity Regulation (Amendment) (Single Electricity Market) Act 2007 (No. 5 of 2007)), following consultation with the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation, hereby makes the following regulations:

Citation

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (Single Electricity Market) Regulations 2007.

Interpretation

2.  In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires:

“Act of 1999” means the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 (No. 23 of 1999) as amended;

“generator” means a person licensed to generate electricity or exempt from the requirement to be licensed to generate electricity;

“generator unit” means a unit of a generating station;

“maximum export capacity” means the maximum export capacity of a site as defined under the site's connection agreement;

“Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code” means the code of that name to be established pursuant to section 9BA(1) of the Act of 1999, and designated pursuant to these Regulations, as from time to time revised, amended, supplemented or replaced; and

“supplier” means a person licensed to supply electricity or exempt from the requirement to be licensed to supply electricity.

Transitional Arrangements

3.  Subject to Regulation 5, licence holders under section 14(1) of the Act of 1999 shall:

(a)       do all that is necessary, as determined by the licence holder, to prepare for the Single Electricity Market, including the putting into place of all necessary managerial, commercial, technical, financial and legal arrangements; and

(b)       execute such transitional agreements or arrangements as may be deemed necessary, and designated as such, by the Commission.

The Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code

4.  (1) The Commission shall, pursuant to section 9BA(1) of the Act of 1999, establish a code to apply in relation to the operation of the Single Electricity Market and such code shall include rules and procedures relating to the matters specified in the Schedule to these Regulations.

(2)  The code referred to in paragraph 1 shall be designated by the Commission as the ‘Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code’.

Participation in the Single Electricity Market

5.  (1) Subject to the provisions of this Regulation, a person who is a licence holder under section 14(1)(a) to (d) and (h) of the Act of 1999 shall make available for trading under the Single Electricity Market such electricity as is generated by that person or available to that person for supply.

(2)  A maximum export capacity of 10 megawatts is prescribed as the threshold quantity for the purposes of section 9BA(2)(b)(ii) of the Act of 1999.

(3)  A person who is the holder of a licence under section 14(1)(a) of the Act of 1999 who does not generate an amount of electricity greater than the threshold quantity prescribed by paragraph 2 may, but is not required to, make available for trading under the Single Electricity Market such electricity as is generated by that person.

Determination of the Market Start Date

6.  The date on which trading commences under the Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code shall be determined by the Commission but shall not be earlier than 1 November 2007.

SCHEDULE

The Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code shall be of such form and content as necessary for the establishment and operation of the Single Electricity Market. The Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code shall contain such rules and procedures that provide, inter alia, for:

(1)        a gross mandatory pool (“the pool”), through which all electricity transmitted or distributed shall be traded unless otherwise exempted;

(2)        a single system marginal price (SMP) that is set for each trading period, based on a market schedule that is unconstrained by transmission limitations; the method of determination of SMP shall be set out in the Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code;

(3)        all suppliers trading in the pool to purchase electricity at the SMP and all generators trading in the pool to be paid the SMP for electricity generation scheduled in the market schedule;

(4)        a system of central commitment as provided for in the grid code, with generators dispatched on the basis of offers submitted;

(5)        a requirement for generators, with respect to each individual generator unit, to submit offers for each trading day;

(6)        the collection and distribution of payments for capacity based on a fixed amount determined annually;

(7)        the collection and distribution of payments for the compensation of a generator where one or more of its generator units are subject to a transmission system constraint;

(8)        without prejudice to these Regulations, the amending of its own terms through modification proposals;

(9)        the publication of information, subject to preservation of the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information, as so determined by the Commission; and

(10)      the resolution of disputes between parties to the Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code by a dispute resolution board established pursuant to that code.

GIVEN under the common seal of the Commission for Energy Regulation, 3 July 2007

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These regulations establish the trading arrangements and other related matters considered necessary to establish and facilitate the operation of the Single Electricity Market (SEM), being a single competitive wholesale electricity market on the island of Ireland. The SEM market design is described in the Schedule to these Regulations. The rules and procedures for an electricity trading and settlement system for the SEM are to be set out in a SEM Trading and Settlement Code established pursuant to section 9BA(1) of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 and designated pursuant to these Regulations.