energy news

How is your electricity supply managed and supplied?


16th December, 2009

How is your electricity supply managed and supplied?

Between September 1998 and September 1999 the electricity market was fully deregulated. This meant that any business or residential customer in the UK can now choose to buy their electricity from a number of different suppliers. The suppliers include the Regional Electricity Companies but also include other players such as Centrica (British Gas), direct sellers and affinity deals through supermarket chains, finance companies, etc. This competition means savings as each supplier tries to capture the largest stake in the UK.

The Electricity Industry in the UK has four main elements. They are:

Generation - responsible for generating the energy we use in our homes and businesses.  Although historically, electricity generation was mainly derived from coal consumption, the UK generating industry has moved to a variety of generation methods - nuclear, gas etc. Generated electricity flows into the transmission network and through to the regional Distribution networks.

Transmission - responsible for maintaining and operating the high-voltage transmission network.  This network carries large amounts of power from the generators to the distribution networks - similar to the motorways of the country's road networks. There are three transmission licence holders in Great Britain - Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern Energy in Scotland, National Grid in England and Wales. National Grid operates the network across Great Britain, but only owns the network in England and Wales.

Distributors - are the owners and operators of the network of towers and cables that bring electricity from the high-voltage transmission Network to homes and businesses. Even so, they are not the organisations that sell electricity to the end consumer.  This is carried out by organisations who make use of the distribution networks to pass the energy commodity to your property - the suppliers.

Suppliers - are the companies who supply and sell electricity to the consumer. The suppliers are the first point of contact when arranging an electricity supply to domestic, commercial and smaller industrial premises.

What does the Electricity MPAN or Supply Number mean?

Each separate electricity meter has its own unique identification number known as its MPAN or Metering Point Administration Number. It provides a unique identity reference number for the meter and provides other information as follows:

 

Profile Class

Every property has a profile class. Profile classes are used where half -hourly metering is not installed and provides the electricity supplier with an expectation as to how electricity will be consumed throughout the day.

Domestic customers are in two classes 01 and 02. Non Half Hourly (NHH) metered sites that exist are 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, and 08. Where Half-Hourly (HH) metering is installed (large consumers) the profile class in 00.

Meter Time Switch Code (MTC)

The Meter Time Switch Code indicates how many registers (set of meter reads or dials) your electricity meter has and what times they will operate during the day. The Meter Time Switch Code will show if your meter has two registers, one which records day consumption, the other night.

Line Loss Factor (LLF)

The Line Loss Factor code stipulates the expected costs the distribution company will charge the supplier for using the cables and network in your region. This Line Loss Factor code will also indicate to the electricity supplier the potential charges incurred, due to loss of energy incurred whilst getting the electricity supplier to your meter.

Distributor ID

The Distributor ID will identify the local Distribution Company for your electricity supply. The Distribution company is responsible for management of the distribution system and electricity wires which transports the electricity to your meter. What Region is my meter in? Look at the grid above, you can see the first box on the second line is called "Distributor Identifier". The numbers in this box identify the Region you are in as follows:

10 Eastern Electricity
11 East Midlands Electricity
12 London Electricity
13 MANWEB
14 Midlands Electricity
15 Northern Electricity
16 NORWEB
17 Scottish Hydro-Electric
18 Scottish Power
19 Seeboard
20 Southern Electricity
21 SWALEC
22 SWEB
23 Yorkshire Electricity

Meter Point ID Number

This is a unique number within the distribution area to identify the actual metering point.

Check Digit

This number is calculated from the Distributor ID and Meter Point ID Number to provide a check digit that other systems can use to validate the both numbers.



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