1. The role of Acquirente Unico in the Italian
electricity market
Rome, 4 April 2013

2. Historical background
EU directive
Directive 96/92/EC
common rules of the
internal market in
electricity
Italian legislation
• Lgs.Decree 79/99 established Acquirente Unico
SpA, with the mission of ensuring an adequate
availability of electricity generating capacity and
electricity supply to the captive market
• Law n. 125/2007 established "enhanced protection”
Directive 2003/54/EC
opening up of the
electricity market, on
the demand side
market, including households and SMEs which have
not chosen a supplier yet. AU in charge of:
• procuring electricity to cover the demand of the
“enhanced protection" market and supplying it to
retailers serving this market.
3rd Energy Package,
2009
Boosting
internal
energy market
• Periodical
monitoring
surveys
on
competitive
conditions of retail market; independent out-ofcourt resolution scheme for energy complaints

3. Regulatory framework
Italian electricity market model
Producers & Imports
IPEX, IDEX, MTE
Enhanced Protection Market
Safeguard Market
Open Market
Wholesalers
AU
Enhanced Protection
Suppliers
Safeguard suppliers
Enhanced Protection
Customers
Safeguard Customers
Retailers
Customers
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4. The compliance of the Italian model with the EU principles
Supply of electricity to the enhanced protection market
TWh
Percentage change
Self-production
In the period 2007-2012 the overall
share of “enhanced protection” has
Free market
been substantially reduced, going
from
124.3
TWh
to
78.1
TWh
(approximately 24%) in terms of
energy
Enhanced
protection
market
demand
on
the
national
network.
3

5. Energy procurement
Market evolution: switching trend for households and Small
Medium Enterprises (millions of customers)
HOUSEHOLDS
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
SMEs
2012
4

6. Energy procurement
Electricity covered by type of contract
Demand in 2012: 78,1 TWh
Physical bilaterals
(indexed price)
9%
Purchases in the MGP
57%
Physical bilaterals
(fixed price)
34%
Purchases in the MGP
(uncovered
requirements)
54%
Purchases in the MGP
(covered
requirements)
3%
Physical bilaterals (fixed price)
Physical bilaterals (indexed price)
Purchases in the MGP (uncovered requirements)
Purchases in the MGP (covered requirements)
5

7. Energy procurement
Reference price
 AU transfers electricity to distributors (or their entitled companies depending on the
number of customers served) at a price monthly based on its energy purchasing
costs, added with its own operating costs (cd. Prezzo di Cessione or Supply Price);
 The final price of electricity applied by distributors to end users is set quarterly by
AEEG on the basis of the Supply Price added with regulated components.
• Supply Price
50%
• Marketing Costs (customers management)
4%
• Transmission, Distribution and Metering Tariffs
14,5%
• System general costs (incentives to FER, system research, etc.)*
18%
• Tax and VAT
13,5%
 Thus “enhanced protection” consumers directly benefit from wholesale market
competition like large consumers.
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8. Increasing roles to support liberalization
Energy consumers’ help desk (Sportello per il Consumatore)
Since 2009, the Energy consumers’ help desk, run by AU on the behalf of the Energy
Authority, carries on a number of activities devoted to provide electricity and gas
consumers with information on their rights, on how to switch supplier and how to submit a
complaint..
CALL CENTER
 It
supplies
COMPLAINTS’ OFFICE
 Thanks to this office (more
informative
services
about
markets’
liberalization
than
energetic
 The Call Center has managed
since 2009 up to 1,700,000
complaints
received) consumers may rely
and
consumers’ rights.
80,000
Energy
consumers’
help desk
on
a
straightforward
and
timely way to solve their
disputes
with
gas
electricity
inbound call with high-level
and/or
retailers
service quality
distribution operators.
7
and

9. Increasing roles to support liberalization – empowerment of
customers
The Integrated Information System
Distributors
IIS
Retailers
Switching process
Consumption
volumes
New connections
Compensatory
system
Database MGMT
 Thus, the IIS will facilitate the
exchange of data flows among
distributors and sellers, also reducing
barriers to entry for new suppliers.
Retailers
Distributors
Data flow
 Italian legislation, in 2010, assigned to
Acquirente
Unico
the
design,
development and operation of an
Integrated Information System (IIS).
 Furthermore, it will make the switching
process (and its perception by
consumers) faster, more certain and
more secure. An efficient process
builds consumers’ confidence in the
benefits of competition.
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10. New tasks
Alternative dispute resolution system
 In implementing the Third Energy Package, the Italian Energy Regulator assigned the
organization and development of the ADR system to AU.
 In case suppliers do not provide satisfactory solutions consumers should have the
possibility, before going to court, to get the problem with their supplier settled by
an independent out-of-court mechanism.
 The objective is to enable the consumer to resolve a dispute and obtain
compensation for the harm suffered as a consequence of a commercial transaction
or practice. The ADR system, run by AU, has been operational from 1 April 2013,
with a 12-month test period, in order to guarantee an operational improvement.
OCSIT
 Recently Italian legislation established the Italian Central Stockholding Entity (OCSIT),
whose activities and functions have been attributed to Acquirente Unico. The main
purpose of the entity shall be to hold oil stocks within Italian territory. Furthermore it
will organise emergency and commercial stock and transport services.

11. Thank you for your attention!
www.acquirenteunico.it