TLC proposes new pricing

The Lines Company is reviewing its pricing structure and looks likely to move to a time of use system.

Many customers of The Lines Company (TLC) have been actively fighting the way the company bases its prices on a customers peak usage. A recent series of community meetings have let them have their say.

‘‘There’s been clear messages from the community. They want change and they want it done once; and right,’’ says TLC Chief Executive, Sean Horgan.

Last week, TLC completed a third round of community focus groups across its network. These follow similar meetings held in November 2016 and April and May of this year.

The groups, which are representative of the area, met in Mangakino, Ohakune, Otorohanga, Taumarunui, Te Kuiti and Turangi for an update on the proposed time-of-use (ToU) pricing approach and to consult on next steps.

The TOU pricing is determined by the amount of electricity a customer uses each month and when they’ve used it. Their bill would be made up of a daily fixed charge, a meter charge and three variable charges - peak, off peak and shoulder charges according to when the customer chooses to use the energy.

Under the current pricing regime, customers’ future bills are determined by their past behaviour. Horgan said there are benefits to the TOU system.

‘‘A simpler bill. To be billed on consumption each month, rather than a bill pre-determined by six peaks from their historic consumption,’’ he said.

‘‘[Also] the ‘amount due’ will change every month rather than be consistently the same, since it relates to what they have consumed [and] their bill will not be affected if we control the load on the network to manage transmission costs on the network.’’

Earlier this month TLC launched a trial of ToU as the proposed pricing approach with a representative group of about 200 customers across the network. The trial is set to run until at least the end of March next year and will test the systems and processes needed to support ToU.

The TLC Board will make a decision of ToU pricing later this year, and if approved, customers would see a change in 2018.