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VIS > Articles by: VIS Consultants
Regulatory Technical Services for the Natural Gas Sector for the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) of the Republic of Armenia (NARUC/USAID)
VIS has been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to support the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) of the Republic of Armenia on elements of the gas market development. The assignment focuses on the development of a methodology and rules to calculate technical losses of the gas transmission system, development of templates to cover the reporting requirements of gas stakeholders to PSRC, and development, together with E3 Modelling, of a long-term gas and electricity forecasting tool.
Regulatory Technical Services for the Natural Gas Sector for the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) of the Republic of North Macedonia (NARUC/USAID)
VIS has been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to support the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) of the Republic of North Macedonia with the development of key elements of the natural gas transmission grid code, focusing on capacity allocation, congestion management and balancing. The assignment includes update of existing rules for capacity allocation and congestion management, the development of balancing rules and methodologies, provision of capacity building to gas stakeholders of the North Macedonian market, and formulation of an action plan that operationalizes key network code elements.
Legal & Regulatory Technical Services for Development of Primary and Secondary Energy Legislation (NARUC/USAID)
VIS has been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to support the energy regulators, ministries and/or other organizations of the Europe & Eurasia countries in developing their primary and secondary legislation to comply with the requirements of the EU 3rd Energy Package and the Clean Energy Package. The contract covers a wide range of topics, including inter alia electricity and gas market development, de-carbonization, renewable energy integration, energy efficiency and demand response, grid modernization, cybersecurity, digitalization, net metering and prosumers, balancing and ancillary services, and energy storage.
Technical Assistance to Develop Network Code on Gas Balancing of Transmission Networks for the National Agency of Energy Regulation of the Republic of Moldova (NARUC/USAID)
VIS has been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to support the National Agency of Energy Regulation of the Republic of Moldova (ANRE) with the development of gas balancing rules for the transmission system. The assignment includes development of relevant rules and methodologies, provision of capacity building to gas stakeholders of the Moldovan market, and formulation of an action plan that operationalizes key network code elements.
NARUC: Depreciation Expense – A Primer for Utility Regulators
VIS has authored a technical primer for NARUC on depreciation expense within electricity tariff regulation, as part of the USAID-supported …
USAID ESP: EU Examples Of Natural Gas Supply To Households –Liberalization, Switching And Balancing Practices Benchmark Study
VIS co-authored this report, that examines specific aspects related to the supply of natural gas to households in gas retail …
Cost Benefit Analysis in the Egyptian Oil & Gas Sector
DAI is leading a consortium that implements a large EU funded technical assistance project “Support the Technical and Financial Sustainability of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Sectors” in Egypt. VIS is to support the consortium by conducting a cost-benefit analysis on major energy efficiency interventions to several oil & gas energy infrastructures (NG processing plant, refinery etc.). The economic benefits vs costs will be examined on a bespoke model by VIS where environmental and social externalities are defined, monetized, and evaluated under different scenarios.
Primer on the Impact of Electricity Tariff Reforms
The reform towards cost-reflective tariffs, based on sound economic principles, is of crucial importance for safeguarding the financial viability of energy utilities and of the electricity sector as a whole, as well as for ensuring that appropriate incentives are in place for attracting necessary investments in the sector. Under this context, VIS along with E3M have been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to develop a Primer on the impact of electricity tariff reform on investment and economic development that will serve as a basis for a further multiyear project (consisting of several Primers) by NARUC, aimed at creating a tool kit that will complement USAID’s efforts to encourage cost-based tariffs.
NARUC: Improving Investment Planning Through The Implementation And Enforcement Of Quality Of Service Standards – Revised Data Collection Templates and Common Set Of Metrics and Methods for Establishing Performance Benchmarks
VIS implemented this project for NARUC, under USAID funding, and developed a unified framework for electricity quality of service (QoS) …
Study (2020/21) on the yearly monitoring of congestion at interconnection points of gas TSOs (ACER)
Support to ACER for preparation of the gas congestion management report – VIS has been commission by ACER to provide support with preparation of the 8th edition of the Congestion Report at gas Interconnection Points, in line with Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 715/2009 (amended by Decision of 24/8/2012). The support entailed collection and validation of data on capacity auctions (capacity offers and demand, tariffs, premia), development of an excel-based congestion analysis tool, analysis of congestion data, support ACER with drafting of the Congestion Report.
Support to RAE for the development of a framework for appraising gas distribution development plans
Support to RAE for the development of a framework for appraising gas distribution development plans – VIS has been commissioned by the Greek Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE) to provide support in the development of a framework for appraising 5-year Network Development Plans (NDPs) submitted by the Greek gas distribution system operators. The assignment includes development of a template for the submission of the NDPs, the methodology for appraising the constituent investment projects and the process for monitoring the NDPs’ implementation.
Project Preparation and Tender of a New Natural Gas Distribution System – Lead Consultant
VIS participates in a consortium led by Grant Thornton, commissioned by the EBRD to provide support to the Government of North Macedonia in a tender for a strategic investor that will develop the new gas distribution system in the country. The project includes inter alia analysis of the gas distribution systems’ development, structuring of the PPP and support to the Government throughout the competitive dialogue process and negotiations with investors.
VIS is investing into research & development to gain better insights into how energy is consumed
VIS is participating, along with Public Power Corporation of Greece (PPC) and DRAXIS, in a consortium led by INTRACOM TELECOM, an Athens-based global telecommunication systems and solutions vendor, in the framework of a sophisticated research program aiming to apply statistical and machine learning techniques on large energy consumption datasets, collected and managed by an end-to-end IoT environment. This way, electricity suppliers will gain better insights into their customers’ energy consumption patterns and will be able to provide more detailed and accurate advice to their customers on how to reduce their energy consumption.
This research project is Co‐financed by the European Regional Development Fund of the European Union and Greek national funds through the Operational Program Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, under the call RESEARCH– CREATE – INNOVATE (project code: Τ2ΕΔΚ-04565)
New 5-year project in Central Asia
VIS is happy to announce that as part of the Tetra Tech-led effort it will contribute to the newly-awarded, multi-year USAID Power Central Asia Program. The program covers a range of energy sector areas, from market liberalization reforms to planning and scaling up of renewable energy penetration in the region, to regional market development and capacity building. The program involves support to the five Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – with the aim to promote energy sector modernization and regional cooperation as catalysts for growth.
Market Due Diligence for DEPA Commercial
VIS performs market due diligence of DEPA commercial (incumbent gas supplier of Greece), during the tender process launched by the …
Regulatory and Market Due Diligence for DEPA Infrastructure
Regulatory and Market Due Diligence for DEPA Infrastructure – VIS is part of an international team performing regulatory and market due diligence of DEPA Infrastructure (state-controlled gas distribution networks of Greece), during the tender process launched by the Greek State.
Development of a guide on regulatory treatment of depreciation accounting
VIS has been commissioned by NARUC (assignment funded by USAID) to develop a guide (primer) on the treatment of depreciation in the context of regulatory tariff setting. The primer will review and present different methods of estimating depreciation of utilities’ assets as well as of allocating, in a systematic and rational manner, the value of a depreciable asset over its life. The Primer will form the basis for a multiyear project by NARUC to create a tool kit designed for policymakers, regulators and utilities to encourage cost-based tariffs. In the framework of the assignment, VIS will conduct a Case Study of selected Sub-Saharan countries, on how alternative methodological approaches concerning regulatory treatment of depreciation can be evaluated and applied in practice, in a context that is relevant to the Primer’s primary beneficiaries.
Successful development and implementation of a long term NG demand forecasting tool for Georgia
VIS & E3 Modelling have successfully completed the development of a long term natural gas forecasting tool for Georgia. The forecasting tool has already been applied in the Georgian market. In December 2019 it was used by GNERC in the process of setting 3-year tariffs for gas distribution systems. The project was commissioned by NARUC and financed by USAID.
Study for the European Commission on the Prospects of LNG Markets in the Eastern Partner Countries
VIS experts implemented this strategic study for the European Commission commissioned to Stantec. The study aims to strengthen cooperation between …
Study Completed – Technical expertise to assess the prospects of LNG markets in the Eastern Partner countries
VIS was commissioned by Stantec to support a study aiming to assess the potential of LNG in Eastern Parten countries (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine). The study identified potentially viable options for LNG market development in each country (imports from EU, development of LNG terminals, development of small scale liquefication, virtual LNG pipelines), analyzed of each option’s competitiveness and economic performance (netback analysis – CBA), identified prerequisites and key success factors, and proposed policies and next actions to develop the options.