Energy Market Consulting associates (EMCa) specialises in the policy, strategy, implementation and operation of electricity and gas markets, electricity network services and associated network pricing, access and regulatory arrangements. The people we bring to each project have backgrounds at senior levels in global advisory firms and in energy utilities. Our experience allows us to provide rapid and reliable diagnosis of issues and effective solutions to assist utilities, policy-makers, energy users, market operators and regulators.

Our areas of expertise are best demonstrated in the projects we have successfully delivered for our clients:

• Electricity transmission and distribution network access, pricing and regulation
  We have extensive experience undertaking pricing reviews.  For the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) we advised on its reviews of eight electricity network businesses across the eastern states of Australia; for NZ Commerce Commission we advised on Transpower; for Singapore Energy Markets Authority (EMA) we advised on SP Power Assets; and for Western Australia’s Economic Regulation Authority (ERA) we advised on three gas network businesses. We also bring experience advising on pricing in the Philippines.
• Electricity and gas wholesale markets, generation and pricing
  Members of our team were closely involved with the establishment of the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM) and the Victorian gas market and advised on evolution of the Western Australian Electricity Market (WEM). Those members have advised on many market issues including setting up jurisdictional derogations, have established and managed an energy trading operation, developed a generation pricing regime and planned and commissioned new power plant.
• Retail energy markets including retail competition, tariffs, smart metering and smart grids
  Members of our team have extensive experience with the development of smart metering and associated tariffs, smart grids, associated technology adaptation (including advanced metering infrastructure), realisation of benefits and the integration of renewable energy into networks. EMCa provided advice to the Australian Ministerial Council on Energy, the Victorian Government and to a UK network company on the costs and benefits of smart metering. Our MD led advice on consumer policy matters, market participant roles and functional specification of the systems required to implement full retail contestability in the NEM. EMCa has advised the Singapore EMA on gas market retail competition.
• Electricity and gas utility management including planning, forecasting, business case analysis, budgeting and financial modelling
  Our MD established the building block approach to regulatory price-setting for TransPower, for the forerunner to SP AusNet, and for Western Power and advised on these requirements for the NEM. He led the development of the ‘market carriage’ gas transmission and distribution pricing structure in Victoria. We have advised extensively in Australia NZ and Singapore on long-term demand forecasting, expenditure projections, budgeting, financial modelling, business case analysis and major project assessment.  This work was conducted as part of regulatory price reviews, as pre-conditions to industry restructuring and for privatisation purposes.
• Energy utility sector reform, restructuring and deregulation policies
  Our team has advised governments and played a significant role in implementing electricity sector reforms and restructuring at the policy level and from within the utility business. Our MD has led teams involved with the disaggregation of the Vic and WA businesses and subsequent industry restructuring in these states and (in the case of Victoria) the sale of those assets.

In all work, we provide a highly focused approach that aims to produce a sound ‘problem definition’ and then to apply our collective experience to establish well-supported, implementable solutions.  Our approach to each assignment tends to involve strong communication and consultation.  And our first-hand experience in a variety of senior industry roles gives us the ability to mediate solutions amongst diverse stakeholder groups.