What's the benchmark agreement?
If an individual transmission agreement is not signed, a default benchmark agreement applies.
Benchmark agreement
The benchmark agreement acts as a default transmission agreement when one hasn’t been established between Transpower and its transmission customers. It can also be useful for transmission customers when they set up and negotiate their own contract with Transpower.
The benchmark agreement includes:
- technical obligations
- information provision obligations
- payment obligations
- service definitions, service levels and service measures
- connection services and interconnection information services.
Grid reliability standards
The benchmark agreement must be consistent with the grid reliability standards. These are a set of standards against which the reliability performance of the existing grid (or future developments to it) can be assessed.
The grid reliability standards are determined using economic considerations. This includes taking into account the cost to consumers of losses of supply, while meeting technical and safety requirements.
The Code (clauses 12.55 to 12.62) contains principles for the development and requirements for grid reliability standards.