Professional Documents
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Erldunda Associates
27 Erldunda Circuit
HAWKER ACT 2614
Normal Phone 06 254 6133
Normal Fax C/o 06 254 8684
To: Electricity Reform Steering
Committee / Bill Glyde
Destination Fax: 02 901 8726 / 02 269 7275
Attention: Brian Spalding / Bill Glyde
Phone: 02 901 8255 / 02 269 7251
From: John Kain
Phone at this time: 042 28 2209 (Wed, Thurs only)
Fax at this time: 042 28 2892
Pages incl this page:
Message:
Electricity Pricing Analysis
Basis of voltage segregation factors etc.
Following an indication from Bill Glyde (as Supervisor of this Cost & Pricing Analysis Project) that you would
appreciate some background to the voltage segregation factors applied in the recent “Comments for Discussion”
document, I have assembled the following pages for your information.
I will sent a copy also to Bill Glyde to facilitate your discussion.
I presume you have a copy of the recent “Comments” document if not Harry Colebourn may still have a spare, or I
can prepare a copy specially if necessary.
Regards,
John Kain.
Certain segregations and weighting have been used in the analysis, generally derived from information supplied by
the individual distributors in there data for the 1992/3 Analysis and Reports.
Allocation by Business Area, Cost driver and voltage level
At the time, the Code of Accounting practice defined classifications of operating expenditure in some detail, and
Distributors were required to provide a segregation of expenditure at the item level, generally in accordance with the
attached proforma.
The segregation was carried out for each item as on the pages xxx to xxxvii attached, under the main expenditure
reporting heads of
Subtransmission & Distribution
Customer Service & Administration
Depreciation
Interest
Sundries and
Provision for ‘Rate fi Return” / “Dividend & Tax equivalents”
Each item was to be segregated (horizontally) according to its cost driver and (vertically) according to the elements
of the system used at various voltages generally as follows;
Subtransmission level
High voltage
Distribution level
Low voltage
reticulation level.
Percentage values for segregation horizontally were suggested by the steering committee, generally as shown on page
xxvi of the accompanying. Certain distributors used slightly different factors, but most accepted the suggested
values.
It was suggested that the voltage segregation be carried out as most relevant, perhaps by number of poles( say for
Line & Pole Inspection & Maintenance), or by line route length (say for tree lopping & clearing, or by reference to
record (say for Fault & emergency work), as suggested on page xxx, and the following sheets.
The data was brought together at a first summary level on pages xxvii to xxix following, and into the “Overall
Operating Expenditure Summary” page xxv with percentage segregations into the main cost driver, and by the
voltage levels.
Segregations for 93/94 Analysis
The Reporting to Office of Energy for 93/94 required “ringfenced accounting for “Retail” and “Distribution” (and
other) activities, resulting in a first split of more recent costs according to the Business sector, and I have used these
for the Wires / Distribution split.
I have used the previous years “Distribution” sector split percentages for drivers by customer or demand and for the
voltage segregation.
At a first level, the segregation should not change much year on year, but as the Code of Accounting is now less
prescriptive, it is not clear that I can seek a new segregation in this manner.
Bill Glyde has circulated the Comments to the “sample set” of distributors, and I believe little comment or request
for change has resulted.
Customer Weighting Factors
In similar fashion, the steering committee proposed a series of “weighting factors” for the “Customer related” cost
items to recognise costs differing between say a single phase domestic customer (suggested as unity weighting) , a
subsidiary account for controlled load offpeak (suggested about 0.2 weighting), to 1.5 for small general, and with
values from 8 to 30 for customers with more sophisticated servicing , metering and accounting etc. Page 32 shows a
derivative matrix (similar to that used by Sydney Electricity) and a single set of “Suggested Factors.”
Again, most Distributors used these figures, either directly or with some amendment where they required for a good
reflection of local conditions.
The factors used by each Distributor last time have been used again.
Class Energy and Loss Segregation by Time of Use
The previous analysis required that the various retail sales classes be allocated percentage fraction for use within the
BST Peak, Shoulder & OffPeak periods, together with “lossadder” fractions for each time. These would have been
derived from TOU metering for those classes for which it was available, and by allocation of residuals from samples
(or best estimate) at the Distribution or Zone substation level for other classes.
Application of these factors allowed derivation of time of Use purchase segregation by customer class, and by
summation, the “builtup” energy required to be purchased within each time zone to match the retail sales ( to
which the retail costs and revenues were related).
Comparison of the “purchase energy required as summated from sales” with the known BSP timed energy supply
allowed a check on the likely accuracy of the allocations.
Most Distributors matched within about one percent at the total level, so that the individual segregations likely had
some fair validity.
I trust this allows you a slightly better appreciation of the bases used, but I would be pleased to clarify further in any
manner you wish.
John Kain
Principal
Erldunda Associates.