Performance Assurance: Technical Assurance of Metering Systems (TAM) |
Guidance Note |
What this document covers
What the Technical Assurance of Metering (TAM) Performance Assurance Technique (PAT) is and what it is intended to achieve;
Your obligations as a Performance Assurance Party (PAP), including the information you are required to provide, arranging and attending Site Visits, and what you must do if the Auditor raises any non-Compliances;
What this document does not cover
TAM Audit Reports and other documentation including the Audit Scope, which are available on the Technical Assurance of Metering Systems page of the BSC Website
Details of the specific checks carried out during the TAM Audit, and what PAPs must do to prepare for them, which are covered in the Local Working Instructions for TAA Site Visits and TAA Desktop Audits
Information on what is required to resolve specific kinds of non-Compliance recorded by the TAA; a separate Guidance Note covers what is needed to resolve some common non-Compliances, and you can contact your Operational Support Manager (OSM) to arrange for further education and training if needed
Details of the framework of Settlement Risks that Elexon and the Performance Assurance Board (PAB) use to inform the scope and deployment of Techniques during each Performance Assurance Operating Period (PAOP), which is included in a separate Guidance Note
Detailed governance for both the TAM Technique and the Code obligations it checks, which can be found in The BSC itself (particularly Section L) and Code Subsidiary Documents (CSDs), particularly BSCP27 and the Metering Codes of Practice (CoPs)
Your Operational Support Manager (OSM) is your first point of contact for Performance Assurance queries and is available to support you.
If you have a more general question about Performance Assurance, please raise a ticket through the online
Elexon Support portal.
Who should use this Guidance Note?
This Guidance Note can be used by anyone to looking to familiarise themselves with Elexon’s Performance Assurance Framework (PAF).
Suppliers
Registrants of Central Volume Allocation (CVA) Metering Systems
CVA Meter Operators (MOAs)
Half Hourly (HH) Data Collectors (DCs)
Advanced Data Services
Licensed Distribution System Operators (LDSOs)
And other industry participants including:
What is the TAM Performance Assurance Technique (PAT)?
Technical Assurance of Metering (TAM) is a Detective Technique within Elexon’s Performance Assurance Framework (PAF) that monitors the compliance of metering systems with the requirements set out in the Code.
The TAM Audit is a mixture of Inspection Visits and Desktop Audits carried out each year by the Technical Assurance Agent (TAA). It is Elexon and the Performance Assurance Board (PAB)’s primary source of data Settlement Risks associated with the physical installation and maintenance of Meters and metering equipment, and an important source of data on Settlement Risks associated with standing data relating to metering systems.
In the Central Volume Allocation (CVA) market, the TAM Audit is also an important control for mitigating the risk of high-volume Settlement Errors resulting from improperly installed or maintained metering equipment, or errors in standing data standing data relating to metering systems.
Prior to the start of each Performance Assurance Operating Period (PAOP), Elexon uses data from the TAM Audit to prepare the annual Risk Evaluation Register (RER) and (Risk Operating Plan), setting out its strategy for mitigating Settlement Risk.
The findings of the TAM Audit may also prompt Elexon and the PAB to deploy other PATs, including:
An Assurance Information Request (AIR) or Technical Assurance of Performance Assurance Parties (TAPAP) check, to gather additional information to understand how and to what extent Parties and Party Agents can meet their Code obligations
Education, to support Parties and Party Agents in understanding their Code obligations
Error and Failure Resolution (EFR), where there is evidence a Party or Party Agent is responsible for serious and/or systematic non-Compliance with its Code obligations
BSC Change, where there is evidence existing Code obligations do not effectively mitigate Settlement Risk
BSC Parties and Elexon may also sometimes raise Trading Disputes to rectify errors in Settlement data resulting from a metering fault or error in standing data detected through the TAM Audit.
What is the Technical Assurance Agent (TAA)?
The TAA is a BSC Agent commissioned and managed by Elexon to carry out the TAM Audit in accordance with the provisions of BSCP 27. The current TAA is C&C Group Holdings Ltd.
All TAA auditors are suitably qualified, trained and experienced to carry out Inspection Visits and Desktop Audits, and have the appropriate authorisations to work on relevant metering equipment throughout Great Britain.
All TAA auditors carry copies of their authorisations when attending Inspection Visits, and Elexon can provide copies via e-mail on request.
What is the Technical Assurance Agent Management Tool (TAAMT)?
The
TAAMT is a secure central repository for TAA Audit documentation, and a communications tool between PAPs, the TAA and Elexon. Users can view inspection schedules, results, submit data and communicate with the TAA about their Audits.
Your OSM can provide you with details on how to register for and access the TAAMT.
Market Wide Half Hourly Settlement (MHHS)
The transition to Market Wide Half Hourly Settlement (MHHS) will not require Elexon to change any of the checks carried out as part of an Inspection Visit or Desktop Audit. Elexon will carry out some minor cosmetic changes to BSCP27 and the TAAMT to remove references to HH Metering Systems and Measurement Classes and to include new Agent Roles such as Advanced Data Services where these may be required to participate in the TAM Audit.
What is the TAM Audit Cycle?
The TAM Audit cycle runs from 1 April to 31 March in line with the BSC Year and the PAOP.
The scope of the Audit is set for each PAOP by the BSC Panel on the advice of Elexon and the PAB. When setting the Scope, Elexon and the PAB consider a range of factors including the findings of the previous year’s Audit, changes to the BSC, and issues identified by other Performance Assurance Techniques (PATs).
The Audit scope always contains a Main Sample of SVA Metering Systems and one or more Specific Samples focussed on high-risk CVA Metering Systems. It may also contain provision for additional Specific Samples of SVA Metering Systems, and a limited number of Targeted Visits that Elexon or the PAB can deploy when they are concerned about specific Metering Systems.
Inspection Visits and Desktop Audits
Each sample can include a mixture of:
All PAPs contacted about an Inspection Visit are required by the Code to support the TAA in carrying out the inspection, whether by arranging access, providing information, or attending the inspection visit.
Similarly, all PAPs contacted about a Desktop Audit are required by the Code to provide the TAA with the necessary information and data to complete the audit.
You can read more about the steps you must complete and the checks the TAA carry out in the Performance Assurance: TAA Inspection Visit Local Working Instruction and Performance Assurance: TAA Desktop Audit Local Working Instruction.
Once notified of an Inspection Visit or Desktop Audit, PAPs must make sure that they understand their obligations under BSCP27 and must contact the TAA or their OSM as soon as possible if they have any questions.
Failure to comply with these obligations is itself a non-Compliance and can result in Elexon and the PAB taking further Performance Assurance action as needed.
The Supplier (for an SVA Metering System) or Registrant (for a CVA Metering System) is ultimately responsible for ensuring their Appointed DC and/or MOA complies with their obligations and must take active steps to ensure they complete the necessary actions where they have not done so.
After an Inspection Visit or Desktop Audit has been completed, the TAA will share the results with Elexon, the Supplier or Registrant and the relevant Supplier and BSC Agents through the TAAMT.
The results will include any findings of non-Compliance with the Code.
Non-Compliances from Inspection Visits are divided into:
Category 1 non-Compliances that are currently affecting the quality of Settlement data
NC non-Compliances, in which metered data taken during the Inspection Visits is subsequently found to be different from the metered data retrieved by the DC, ADS or CDCA
Category 2 non-Compliances that have the potential to affect the quality of data for Settlement purposes
The TAA Auditor may also record Observations where the metering system is Compliant with the Code but best practice has not been followed.
Non-Compliances from Desktop Audits are divided into:
Category A non-Compliances that are or are highly likely to be currently affecting the quality of Settlement data, or indicate that the Supplier or Registrant has failed to complete the Audit
Category B non-Compliances that are less likely to be currently affecting the quality of Settlement data, or indicate that a Party, Party Agent, or BSC Agent has not provided information required for the Audit
You can find a full list of non-Compliances, including who is responsible for rectifying them and the relevant Settlement Risk(s), in the in the Local Working Instructions for TAA Site Visits and TAA Desktop Audits.
What must I do if the TAA records a non-Compliance with the Code?
All Parties and Party Agents are required to rectify any non-Compliances identified through the TAM Audit as soon as is reasonably possible.
The Supplier or Registrant of the metering system is ultimately accountable for ensuring their appointed Agents complete the necessary work to rectify non-Compliances and must work with them if necessary to make sure this happens.
Where the Supplier or Registrant and/or the relevant Party Agents expects a rectification plan to take some time to complete they should agree milestone dates on which they will upload evidence showing the plan is on track. In such cases, the TAA will decide what constitutes acceptable evidence that the plan is progressing as expected.
Where a Category 1 or Category A non-Compliance cannot be rectified immediately, the Supplier or Registrant must take appropriate steps to ensure that correct data is returned into Settlement. This may include making changes to historic data in advance of the next scheduled Reconciliation Run and/or progressing a Trading Dispute for data that has passed the Final Reconciliation (RF) Run.
Elexon and the PAB may take additional Performance Assurance action if you fail to take rectify a non-Compliance in a timely fashion and/or correct any error in Settlement data that has resulted from it.
The actions and timescales for resolving a non-Compliance are set out in BSCP27. You can find further information on how to resolve some common non-Compliances in the Performance Assurance: Technical Assurance of Metering (TAM) Audit Non-Compliances Guidance Note.
What should I do if I want to Query or Appeal a finding of Non-Compliance?
You can query or appeal a non-Compliance through the Queries and Appeals section of the TAAMT. The TAA and Elexon will progress the query or appeal in line with the process set out in BSCP27.
TAA Annual Report and Response
Following the conclusion of each Audit Year the TAA presents a report to the PAB and BSC Panel for approval.
This is subsequently published in on the
Elexon Website. Elexon also publishes a Response paper, setting out the actions it will take in response to the TAA Annual Report.
Party and Party Agent Findings Reports
Following the conclusion of each Audit Year Elexon sends audit participants that have been involved in 25 or more Inspection Visits a confidential report summarising their findings for the Audit Year. These collate the information previously shared via the TAAMT.
Elexon’s Performance Assurance Team and the TAA also offer these participants a debrief meeting if they wish to discuss the findings in more detail.
Do you need more information?
Your
OSM is your first point of contact for Performance Assurance queries and is available to support you. If you’re not sure who they are, check the
BSC Signatories and Qualified Persons page of our website.
For any other information please raise a ticket through the online
Elexon Support portal.
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