Guidance for distributors to support security of supply

The Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko has created two quick reference guides to assist distributors with the process of submitting difference bids for controllable load.

This process supports security of supply by providing the system operator and market participants with visibility of available controllable load to manage periods of tight supply. Controllable load is electricity demand that can be reduced quickly without impacting consumers, such as hot water heating.

When requested by the system operator, distributors must provide information on their available controllable load under a grid emergency. The mechanism for providing this information is known as a difference bid.

There are two reference guides available below. One describes the process for uploading difference bids to the wholesale information trading system (WITS) using CSV files. The other describes the process for uploading difference bids using the WITS on-screen form. The content has been reviewed and approved by NZX and the system operator.

For more information, distributors can watch this difference bids refresher workshop.