Interview: The role of data quality for direct marketing

Mr. Schilling, what role does data play in direct marketing?

Michael Schilling: As a direct marketer, we are extremely dependent on high data quality throughout the customer relationship: from the initial contact of a plant operator requesting an offer from us for direct marketing, to the marketing of generation volumes in wholesale electricity trading, to the handling of necessary processes after the end of the contract. Data quality is determined by various dimensions. On the one hand, it is important that data be complete and correct, as well as up-to-date and, of course, internally consistent. On the other hand, they should be consistent and unambiguous, but also understandable and relevant.

What data is required for a request for direct marketing?

In case of a request for direct marketing of a wind farm we need for example the following data for an evaluation and calculation:

• the master data of the wind farm e.g. the geo-coordinates of the wind turbines, the hub height and the rotor diameter,
• the turbine type,
• load profile data of the distribution grid operator in ¼-h time interval - no data from the SCADA system of the wind turbines,
• the load response data of the past, ideally from the current year as well as from two previous years including the time series of the outage work during redispatch measures of the grid operator,
• in the case of requests for several wind farms, load profile data that can be clearly assigned to each individual wind farm.

Additional information such as shutdowns due to maintenance, shadow flicker to protect residents, bat occurrences (mostly at night), birds (mostly during the day) or grid restrictions are very helpful for the calculation of the service charge and reduce the risk in the assessment.

Why are the data and information important for evaluating the generation of a wind farm?
 

As a direct marketer, we have to estimate as accurately as possible which energy quantities will be generated at what time in the future and which revenues can be achieved with them when they are marketed on the EPEX Spot exchange. In order to be able to forecast the generation quantities, we compare the real load profile data of the wind farm from the past with an idealized load profile of the turbine type. We consider the specific hub height, rotor diameter, and wind speeds prevailing at the particular site at those times. So we compare how much the wind farm generated and how much we think it could have generated. This gives us an idea of the performance of the specific turbine.

If this comparison is nearly congruent, there is a high probability that the wind farm will continue to feed in the future as we expect. If, however, large differences occur in the comparison, cause research is carried out. If the search for an explanation remains unsuccessful, we have to try to absorb the uncertainty of the future performance of the plant with risk premiums in the calculation.

So basically, the better the data quality for an inquiry, the more accurately you can calculate and reduce the risk premiums?

Exactly.

Which file formats are used for direct marketing?

Unfortunately, there is still no uniform format for the transmission and further processing of data for customer inquiries, so we are provided with a colorful bouquet of the most diverse file formats. Most players use MS-Excel, which we can process very well.

Our goal is to use the Market Master Data Register (MaStR) set up and put into operation by the Federal Network Agency in the future. All plant operators are obliged to register themselves in the register, enter the plant data and keep it up to date. We can then retrieve at least the master data directly from the MaStR via a unique MaStR number. The plant operator then only has to provide us with the load profile data, because this transaction data does not have to be stored in MaStR.
 

What role does data quality play?

One dimension of data quality that is important for marketing the electrical energy generated on the wholesale market is the reliability of data delivery. For successful marketing of EEG plants, we need to know the operating status, i.e. the actual feed-in, which must be continuously measured and made available to us via data interface. With this data, we can optimize the marketing and, if necessary, regulate the generation of the plants via the installed remote control technology. This data must be continuously available and reliably transmitted.

Do you already have solutions that simplify the processes after the conclusion of the direct marketing contract for you and your customers?

Yes, we do! Once the direct marketing contract has been concluded, plant operators still have to transmit a lot of other master data to us as direct marketers. This includes the market location number and the SR and TR ID for taking over and handling roles under the Redispatch 2.0 regime. This data is required for communication with the network operator, which is carried out purely electronically in special formats.

To keep the error rate low here, we have set up an onboarding portal. There, plant operators or plant managers can enter the relevant data required for correct and timely registration of the EEG plant with the responsible grid operator. In addition, information relevant to the contract and billing must also be submitted. During the term of the contract, we continuously make contract, load profile and billing data available for each EEG plant on our customer portal.

Is data still required when a direct marketing contract expires?

Absolutely. Even after the termination of a marketing contract, the processes must continue with corresponding data deliveries in high quality. The distribution network operator must be notified of the termination of marketing by us, and the last settlement is made after the settlement data has been transmitted to us by the responsible distribution network operator.

Do you have questions about direct marketing and the required data? Please do not hesitate to contact us!

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