Section A: Parties and Participation |
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Section A of the BSC deals with Parties and participation. The main issues covered include:
the capacities that a Party may have under the BSC;
the arrangements for admission of new Parties;
requirements for Parties to provide information to Elexon, and to register with the Central Registration Agent (CRA);
provisions for withdrawal and expulsion from the BSC.
Parties to the BSC are essentially those persons who are parties to the Framework Agreement. Parties include:
others who voluntarily choose to become Parties.
Each Party may have one or more different participation capacities under the BSC:
the NETSO (currently NETSO as Transmission Licensee);
a Distribution System Operator (i.e. those holding a Distribution Licence);
a Trading Party (a party that holds Energy Accounts);
a Supplier (a Party that holds a Supply Licence and has metering systems registered in Supplier Volume Allocation (SVA);
an Interconnector Error Administrator (IEA), or an Interconnector Administrator (IA);
a Virtual Lead Party.
Energy Accounts are allocated to Parties and these include:
Parties who are responsible for Imports and Exports of electricity (typically generators and suppliers);
Interconnector Error Administrators (IEAs);
other Parties wishing to trade;
NETSO.
A Party has only two energy accounts, a Production Energy Account, and a Consumption Energy Account.
Parties that register solely as a Virtual Lead Party will hold a Virtual Balancing Account unless it has applied to hold Energy Accounts. A Party may at any point in time only hold either a Virtual Balancing Account or Energy Accounts. No Party shall hold more than one Virtual Balancing Account.
Subject to completing the application forms, any person, other than a
BSC Agent, may become a
Party by acceding to the
Framework Agreement in
Section A. Prior to accession, they need to pay an
Application Fee (set by the
Panel) and provide certain
Party Details (see below).
Elexon executes the Accession Agreement and sends a certified copy of the Accession Agreement to the applicant. The Panel, existing Parties, the Authority and the BSC Agents are notified of new Parties.
The Authority rules on any disputes over the accession process. Furthermore, if Elexon fails to administer the accession process properly, the Authority can direct NETSO, rather than Elexon, to execute the Accession Agreement.
If a Party does not take certain 'steps' under the BSC within six months of accession (or a longer time if the Panel decides), they cease to be a Party. The 'steps' include applying to register Metering Systems or BM Units, or submitting contract notifications. This section of the BSC does not apply to those Parties who are required to be Parties by virtue of their licenses or by virtue of a condition of an exemption from the requirement to hold a licence (an Exemption condition).
All Parties have six months to complete certain steps within the Market Entry process to show their intention of trading.
At least one of the below steps will need to have been completed within six months:
Register a Party role (this will be treated as an application to register BM Units); or
The submission of an Energy Contract Volume Notification (ECVN) or Metered Volume; Reallocation Notification (MVRN);
The six month withdrawal check is not required for Parties that:
Hold a license with Ofgem; or
Are subject to an exemption within their license, which requires them to become a Party or comply with the BSC.
If a Party has not completed any of the above steps within six months of Acceding to the BSC then they will need to apply to the Panel for an extension to their acceded status.
Any person, other than an existing BSC
Party, may apply to transfer the
BSC Party ID including all authorisations and qualifications from an existing BSC
Party to itself. Such an applicant is deemed the ‘
Novation Applicant’ and the existing BSC
Party the ‘
Transferring Party’. Prior to application, the
Novation Applicant must pay a
Novation Fee (set by the
Panel). In addition the
Novation Applicant shall provide an application form and an ‘Agreement of Novation of a Contract’ signed by the
Novation Applicant and the
Transferring Party in in accordance with
BSCP65.
Elexon will present the application to the Panel for decision. The Panel may request further supporting evidence for the application but the Panel’s decision is final and cannot be appealed.
Elexon executes the Novation Agreement and sends a certified copy of the Novation Agreement to the Novation Applicant. The Panel, existing Parties, the Authority and the BSC Agents are notified of novation applications and successful novation’s including the names and company numbers of both the Transferring Party and the Novation Applicant.
The Party Details include the Party's name and contact details; contact details of specific personnel; whether they hold any Licenses or any exemptions; any participation capacities; details of other Parties who are affiliates; and any VAT registration details. These must be provided to Elexon and kept up to date by the Party (Party to notify Elexon in advance of any changes).
Elexon is responsible for validating a Party's participation capacities. It need only do this to the extent that it can obtain the necessary information from the Authority, NETSO, Distribution Companies, and IAs.
Elexon is also responsible for maintaining a list of Parties along with names and addresses and participation capacities. This is provided to the CRA and is available on the
BSC Website.
Before registering or appointing any
Party Agents or registering
Metering Systems in relation to any participation capacity, a
Party must first register with the
Central Registration Service (CRS) in that capacity. This registration does not become effective until the
Party has installed and tested the necessary communications systems as set down in
Section O.
To apply for registration in CRS, a
Party must submit its
Party Registration Data to the CRA. This process is covered in
BSCP65: Party Registration. The CRA confirms with Elexon that the applicant is a party to the
Framework Agreement, and that the details submitted are consistent with the
Party Details. Once confirmed, the details are entered into CRS and a registration identity and (if appropriate)
Energy Accounts or
Virtual Balancing Account allocated.
The Party Registration Data must be kept up to date by the Party, and may be amended in accordance with BSCP65. If there is any change in the participation capacity of a Party or its Party Registration Data is incorrect, the Party must apply to the CRA to change its registration details. If a Party wishes to cease being a Trading Party, this can happen where there are no outstanding contract notifications for that Party, and if it has terminated all of its Notification Agent authorisations. Parties remain liable for their obligations and remain entitled to any benefits accrued as a result of their activities as Trading Party, after they cease to become a Trading Party.
Further requirements are placed on Parties elsewhere within the BSC before they can exercise certain rights.
If a Party wishes to withdraw from the BSC and cease to be a party to the Framework Agreement, it must submit a Withdrawal Notice to Elexon and at least 28 days before the specified withdrawal date. There are a number of restrictions on when a Party may exit, these include if the Party: has any outstanding debts (including BSCCo charges); has Metering Systems or BM Units registered; has any outstanding Default capable of remedy; is required by Licence to be a Party or comply with the BSC; if it is an IEA, no replacement IEA has been appointed; or if it is an IA, no replacement has been appointed. However, a Party in Default solely for insolvency reasons may withdraw from the BSC provided that it has met all other withdrawal criteria. In addition, at the discretion of the Panel, any payment due in respect of the Base Monthly Charge accrued since such a Party submitted a Withdrawal Notice may be discounted for the purposes of withdrawal.
The normal withdrawal process takes at least 14 months. A Party who wishes to withdraw earlier than this could request to transfer their Party ID and all of its outstanding obligations and liabilities to another existing Party. If approved, this would assign liabilities associated with some of the withdrawal criteria to another Party, allowing the Withdrawing Party to exit earlier than 14 Months. The new Party would then follow the withdrawal process to withdraw that Party ID in 14 months’ time once all the obligations under the BSC have been met.
The Panel decides whether to expel a Party from the BSC. If it decides to do so, it must notify the Authority and all Parties (including the Party it intends to expel) at least 28 days before issuing an Expulsion Notice, and must take into account any representations from any Party in relation to the expulsion. If the Party is required to be a Party by virtue of a Licence (or Exemption) the Panel may not expel the Party without the approval of the Authority.
If the Panel is entitled to expel a Party and decides to do so, it issues an Expulsion Notice. The Expulsion Date is specified on the Expulsion Notice and must be at least 28 days after the Expulsion Notice is issued.
When a Party withdraws or is expelled from the BSC, it ceases to accrue rights and obligations under the BSC, however its rights and obligations accrued while it was a Party remain.
When a Party transfers its BSC Party ID through Novation, all registrations and authorisations are transferred to the Novation Applicant.
Elexon is required to notify other Parties, each Panel Member, the Authority and each BSC Agent when a Party withdraws, is expelled from the BSC or exits by transfer.
This Annex contains the form of the Accession Agreement, which a party signs to accede to the BSC Framework Agreement.
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