We have taken a lot of calls recently from NFU members who are not completely familiar with half hourly (HH) meters and the different types of contracts that you can get. Some members have accepted contracts where they have been quoted an incredibly good unit rate, only to find on their first bill that there are a lot of additional charges that they were not expecting.

Electricity contracts for HH meters come in different guises, you can have a fully fixed contract that will give you a unit rate, standing charge, ASC, MOP & DC etc. Let me break this down for you:

• Unit rate fully fixed means that all the 3rd party costs for energy are included in this unit rate. This means things like balancing the grid, transmission and transportation costs and government legislation are all included.
• Together with the commodity element, ASC (Available Supply Capacity) charge is usually charged per KVA per month but can be charged per KVA per day.
• MOP & DC are your meter operator contract and your data collection contract. When you have a HH meter you will need to have this and if you do not organise an agent yourself your supplier will appoint a default agent, and this will cost you more as they put a mark-up on this cost.

When you are offered a contract that is not fully fixed you will be amazed at the unit rates and think that you are getting a very good deal. We advise that you read the small print as the 3rd party costs can make up 55% of unit rates on fully fixed contracts.

Rule of thumb is that if it is too good to be true then it is too good to be true.  If in doubt call us and ask for our guidance on any prices that you have been offered, it is better to think twice before accepting than be paying higher rates than expected for the term of your contract.

If you would like more advice on this, please give the team a call on 024 7669 8885.