According to Ben Whitelam, Director of Data & Metering Services and Commercial at npower Business Solutions, the upcoming MHHS reform will empower businesses with unprecedented energy data insights and flexibility, marking a pivotal change in the way we manage power.
This year will see the beginning of one of the biggest transformations to the electricity market to date – the Market-wide Half-Hourly (MHHS) settlement reform. The industry timeline to start delivering MHHS starts in 2025, and is set to bring with it greater energy data insight for organisations across the UK.
So, what is MHHS? And, what does this mean for the future of energy metering in the UK?
Enabling a flexible and clean electricity market
The past few years have seen huge volatility in the wholesale energy markets. The UK government has outlined its ambitions and initial policy plans to help bring energy stability and security, while also hitting its clean power targets by 2030.
To achieve this, the energy market needs complete reform, including the ability to better manage all aspects of electricity more efficiently, particularly with the decrease in 24/7 fossil fuel generation as businesses move to more intermittent renewable power sources. Energy UK describes MHHS as “a vital enabler of the creation of a flexible, clean retail electricity market, ultimately supporting the UK in reaching net zero.”
It will unlock more granular and timely data to understand how and when all consumers use electricity, providing an incredible level of visibility into how much electricity is being consumed for every 30-minute period throughout the day and night. That’s 48 data points for every UK meter in every 24-hour period.
Having access to this additional insight will help to support an energy system that can forecast, generate and distribute electricity far more efficiently than ever before.
For businesses, it will mean more granular cost allocation, access to new products, more innovation, new technologies and flexibility services from their energy suppliers, and ultimately a more cost-efficient energy system.
Key changes to energy metering under MHHS
Under MHHS, there will be several changes to metering services. All meters, even traditional meters, will be settled half-hourly, however, those businesses with a traditional or non half-hourly meter could experience more changes than those who already have a ‘smart’ or advanced meter.
This is why many organisations are choosing to upgrade their meter. There are real benefits to having ‘smart’ or advanced Automated Meter Reading (AMR) meters, as they provide a highly detailed and dynamic picture of a business’ energy use, so businesses should engage with their supplier or metering agent to discuss upgrading their meters.
Meter agent roles and names will change. For example, the current Half-Hourly/Non Half-Hourly split will be replaced by market segment identifiers – Advanced, Smart or Unmetered Supplies. So, for example, Half-Hourly Meter Operators (MOPs) will become Metering Services (Advanced), and Half-Hourly Data Collectors (DC) will become Advanced Data Services, while Non Half-Hourly MOPs and DCs will become Metering Services (Smart) and Smart Data Services.
The profile class of Meter Point Administration Numbers (MPANs) will also change. After the MHHS migration is complete, profile classes will no longer be used. The only exceptions to this are profile classes 02 and 04, which will continue to be used to identify Economy 7 and 10 meters.
The new topline format for MPANs will go live in September 2025 – meter time switch (MTC) will be replaced with Standard Settlement Configuration ID and Line Loss Factor will be replaced by DUOS tariff ID.
Importantly, under MHHS, businesses will also have more choice over who to appoint as their metering agent, making it more of a bespoke service.
MHHS – the opportunity for businesses
We believe that businesses who actively engage with the MHHS will see potential energy saving and carbon reduction opportunities. However, awareness is relatively low – our recent Business Energy Tracker report revealed that 53% of the businesses said they weren’t aware of the reform, and the impact it could have.
That is why energy metering and monitoring needs to be a business priority, with businesses having a greater understanding of how to optimise their energy data. At the end of the day, if this useful data is not being analysed correctly, then it is meaningless.
Using an online visualisation platform can enable businesses to run detailed reports, look at consumption forecasts, compare sites and set up alerts if energy use has exceeded expected levels. This means businesses can pinpoint opportunities to invest in measures to better manage energy consumption, such as energy efficiency, helping to reduce costs and emissions even further.
2025 will be a year of change for the electricity market as the MHHS migration starts. With wider economic and geopolitical pressures looking set to continue into this year, the humble energy meter – and energy data – could be the biggest assets for businesses now and in the future.
