Exit Update - Annual Application Window - Systems Update - Current Licence Consultation

1. Exit Update- Annual Application Window- Systems Update- Current Licence Consultation Transmission Workstream, 6 August

2. Annual Application Window:Update & Next Steps • Reduction window and application window now closed • DCs: 23 increase applications and 12 reduction applications • DNs: 40 increase applications and 11 reduction applications • We will now analyse all of these applications along with initialised levels for purposes of network planning • Allocations will be made in line with the ExCR by 30 September • After DN adjustments to applications accepted beginning September where flex or pressure requests have been rejected • Contact made with some applicants re exceeding MSPOR limit – advise that contact is made with site operator in first instance and customer services for further questions • Ad hoc applications will be accepted from 1 October • We believe that the process went well, but would welcome any feedback.

3. Systems Update • Extensive piece of work to get all exit functionality into Gemini • Likely to be delivered in three phases • Requirement gathering / analysis on phase 1 complete, that stage now started for phase 2 • NB Some elements subject to further internal discussion

4. Current Licence Consultation:Licence / UNC definitions • National Grid has become aware of a number of sites that are classified as single Supply Points under the UNC, but have more than one baseline in the Licence • Supply Meter Point = physical location where gas is made available for offtake i.e. the end of the NTS • Supply Point = notional commercial point used for system balancing, deemed gas flow and transitional regime capacity booking • One or more Supply Meter Points can be comprised in a single Supply Point where gas offtaken from the NTS is supplied to premises: • Owned or occupied by one person • In close geographical proximity to each other • Comprised within a common curtilage, and • Which serve each other in some necessary or reasonably useful way

5. Licence Consultation: Issue • In the enduring exit regime capacity is made available at those NTS Exit Points that are listed with a baseline in the licence • Staythorpe, Stallingborough and Didcot all satisfy the single premises requirement but each has two baselines in the licence • This could cause inefficient booking of capacity and unnecessary signalling of incremental where a site has more than point at which it offtakes gas directly from the NTS • If gas can go down either stream then would need to book sufficient at both to avoid exposure to overruns, effectively double counting • If baselines are aggregated, one capacity booking covers both gas streams allowing site flexibility and avoiding exposure to overruns and inefficient investment signals

6. Licence Consultation: Proposals • Therefore propose that, if a site requests it, and Single Premises Requirement is met, then baselines will be aggregated i.e. • Current Name Current Baseline Merged Name Merged Baseline • Didcot A 87.29 Didcot 137.76 • Didcot B 50.47 • Stallingborough 38.34 Stallingborough 66.5(phase 1) • Stallingborough 28.16 (phase 2) • Staythorpe PH1 38.12 Staythorpe 76.24 • Staythopre PH2 38.12

7. Impacts and Next Steps • Responses requested by 13 August 2009 • A formal consultation is then expected to be issued mid August, which would allow for any changes to be directed to the licence in September • National Grid will then be able to allocate any applications received in the July Annual Application Window against the merged baselines • The prevailing Maximum Supply Point Offtake Rate or Maximum CSEP Offtake Rate in the relevant NExA(s) will continue to apply • Where users have been initialised at both sites that are being merged, the initialisation numbers will be added together