Analyzing Your Rates and Identifying Calculation Rules and Groups

One of the steps you will go through when implementing your rates is to look at the bill lines for your rates and ask yourself what are the variables that cause each line's charges to be calculated the way they are. After you've determined all of the potential bill lines you can start designing your calculation groups and rules. Typically, you create one calculation rule for every line that can appear on the customer's bill. These rules can be grouped in different configurations based on how you want your bills to appear and the needs of your implementation. Recall that bill segment calculation headers are created for Pre-Processing, Rate Version, and Post-Processing calculation groups. In addition, most rules can be configured generate a bill line.

Best Practices

When designing calculation groups and rules, the following general rules apply:

  • Pre-Processing Calculation Groups. Perform any initial processing or conversions that should occur before the rate version calculation group. This can include:
    • Calculating the number of days in a billing period (Calculate Service Quantity)
    • Calculating service quantities that are not measured (demand, kVa, etc.) (Calculate Final Reading Values, Calculate Service Quantity, Math)
    • Validating that consumption is within tolerances set by the rate (residential limits, etc.) (Calculate Service Quantity, with eligibility criteria)
  • Calculations processed by calculation rules should be performed by Rate Version Calculation Groups. This includes most charge calculations, including:
    • Charges based on service quantities (Service Quantity, Stepped Service Quantity)
    • Customer charges (Flat Charge)
    • Minimum/maximum charges (Minimum Charge, Maximum Charge)
    • Discounts (Apply To)
    • Taxes (Apply To)
    • Summaries (Summary, Simple Summary)
  • Additional processing should be performed by Post-Processing Calculation Groups. This can include:
    • Allocating consumption/revenue (energy revenue vs. demand revenue) (Service Quantity)

Example Configurations

Let's look at a couple of different possible configurations for a simple electric rate that includes the following:

  • Customer Charge
  • Service Charge (price per kWh)
  • Minimum Charge
  • Discount

This rate could be set up in the following ways:

  • A single Rate Version calculation group that contains a calculation rule for each of the above
  • A set of Rate Version calculation groups as follows:
    • A calculation group for "flat" charges, such as the Customer Charge
    • A calculation group for consumption-based charges (including the Service Charge and Minimum Charge).
    • A calculation group for discounts or other charges applied to the total of other charges (which would include the Discount)

There are no hard and fast rules concerning how calculation rules should be grouped. How this is done should be based on the specific needs of the implementation but it's a good idea to look for ways to keep your configuration simple for maintenance and upkeep purposes. This includes changes to existing rates as well as adding/removing rates over time.