Ofgem has fined energy company SSE for failing to make inside information about the wholesale energy market known.
Under the Regulation on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT), suppliers must divulge any information that is likely to affect the price of wholesale energy, and they must publish this inside information in a timely manner.
The £2.06 million fine (the first relating to the publication of inside information) sends a very strong message to other energy companies about the importance of complying with REMIT.
SSE failed to publish vital information about three particular energy units at Fiddler's Ferry power station, altogether having a combined generating capacity equivalent to 3% of Great Britain's peak electricity demand. Ofgem discovered that a deal between SSE and NGET (made on 22nd March 2016) reversed the likelihood that these three units would close, which was the general consensus. Without the market knowing that more generation was available than previously thought (due to the three units remaining open), is it likely some market participants ended up paying more for wholesale electricity than they should have.
Jonathan Brearley, chief executive at Ofgem, said:
“SSE’s failure to publish inside information in a timely and effective manner resulted in market participants trading for four working days under a false impression of supply availability in GB’s electricity market. This meant that market participants were likely to have paid higher prices than they needed to, and risked undermining confidence in the wholesale electricity market."
"This fine sends a strong message to market participants that they must be familiar with, and keep to, their obligations under REMIT rules or face enforcement action by Ofgem.”
Source: Ofgem
