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Utility Proposes Replacements, Enhancements To AMI System To Allow PJM Settlement On AMI Data, Improved Retail Supplier Data Access & Product Billing

March 21, 2017

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Copyright 2010-17 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com

Duke Energy Ohio, as part of a new electric rate case filed with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, has sought approval for enhancements to its AMI system and infrastructure.

Among other things, Duke Energy Ohio is seeking to replace specific AMI meters and part of its original communication network (earlier installations relying power-line carrier technology) in order to receive billing-quality interval AMI customer energy usage data (CEUD) from all of its AMI meters.

Duke Energy Ohio said that AMI enhancements would facilitate enhanced retail functions, including, among other things, customer/meter identification, residential customer authorizations, billing, and "Next Day" usage, and enhanced wholesale functions, including settling interval customer energy usage data (CEUD) from AMI meters with PJM, which is the wholesale market

The retail enhancements would permit:

• Methods to identify customers that have billing quality interval CEUD, including keeping the lists of these customers current so CRES [competitive retail electric service] providers will be able to market to them. The "lists" that CRES providers will be able see include Sync Lists (a list of customers by supplier), the Pre-Enrollment List, and the Portal.

• System changes to facilitate the bulk uploading of residential authorizations to release interval CEUD. Currently, CRES providers can upload authorizations one at a time via the CRES Portal; this change will allow bulk uploads. This would also add functionality for customers to self-authorize the release of interval CEUD on the authenticated Duke Energy web site.

• System changes for billing. These changes would allow much larger volumes of data to flow through EDI transactions, including system management tools. EDI changes will also add the ability for CRES Providers to receive interval CEUD from AMI meters, similar to what they are now able to with IDR meters.

• Bill Ready Billing. There will also be system changes to the utility's billing systems so that CRES Providers can put their charges, which are associated with interval CEUD, on the utility's bill using Bill Ready Billing. "This will allow CRES providers to offer any type of electric commodity product they want, without potential limits to what can be calculated in the Company's systems," Duke Energy Ohio said

• System changes to provide "Next Day" usage. This will allow CRES providers the ability to obtain hourly interval CEUD the day after power is consumed. The "enrollment" of a customer and the transmission of "Next Day" interval CEUD will be by EDI transactions

"Once new meters are in place and the data can be certified as billing quality, the data can be provided to CRES providers. This, in turn, will allow the CRES providers to offer new products and services to allow customers to use the data to their best advantage," Duke Energy Ohio said in testimony

As for wholesale enhancements, the enhancement to the PJM settlement systems would allow the AMI meters to be settled based on customers actual hourly loads and allow the PLC and NSPL to be based on actual usage instead of load profiles.

"In addition, if CRES providers begin offering products based on interval usage, this enhancement will better align the potential CRES pricing (and revenue) with PJM settlement (costs)," Duke Energy Ohio said

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