Rates Analysis, Modeling, and Data Integration

Rates analysis, modeling, and data integration (also referred to as the rates enablement process) is the process by which Oracle Utilities analyzes utility rates, configures the Oracle Utilities Rate Engine to calculate and model those rates, and consume rates data from utilities specific to each customer. This results in personalized cost insights for customers calculated by the Rate Engine. Rate analysis and modeling must be purchased separately, and is required at an additional fee when setting up the Oracle Utilities Opower Advanced Rates Engagement Cloud Service.

Note:

The Oracle Utilities Opower rates modeling process can be carried out for residential and non-residential customers. For non-residential customers, an initial assessment is needed to determine if your non-residential rate structure can be supported. Contact Your Delivery Team for more information.

Your Delivery Team will work closely with you to conduct the rates enablement process. The high-level steps include:

  1. Identify which rate plans need to be modeled and acquire the appropriate documentation from the utility. Often, such documentation includes a rate tariff document or published rate case filing describing the rates, terms, and conditions of a utility's rate plan(s). Appropriate documentation may also include examples of actual sample bills and usage charges or synthetic bills. Such information may be used to enable quality assurance checks on the rate modelling results.
  2. Analyze the rate plan documentation to understand how a utility's rates are calculated. Tasks in this step may include:
    • Conduct meetings as needed with rates subject matter experts at the utility to verify how the rate plans work and which riders or appenders are needed, understand the impact on the customer base, and identify efficiencies of scope or other issues that may optimize rate modeling workflow.
    • Identify what rates data needs to be imported into the Oracle Utilities Opower data platform.
    • Review the utility's available rates data, compare it to the data Oracle requires and as set forth in the Oracle Utilities Opower Entity Attribute data transfer documentation, and identify the fields and information the utility must send to Oracle to enable proper rates modeling and presentment as part of the relevant cloud service(s).
    • Depending on the project, the Oracle Content Migration Assistant (CMA) process may be used to capture the necessary rate configurations. Your Delivery Team will work with you to provide specific instructions on if and how to leverage the CMA for your situation.
  3. Review the rates data, if any, being provided by the utility to Oracle at the time of project kick-off and compare it to the data required, with reference to the Entity Attribute Data Transfer documentation, and identify the fields/information the utility must send to Oracle to enable the utility’s rates to be properly modeled by the Rate Engine.
  4. Assist the utility with updating its data integration with Oracle so the utility may provide Oracle with the correct rate attributes, bill determinants, and other information as needed to properly calculate and present cost-based energy insights.
  5. Analyze and validate that the rates data sent from the utility to Oracle contains the same fields and formatting, and otherwise conforms to the requirements set forth in the Oracle Utilities Opower Entity Attribute data transfer documentation or other documentation shared during the rates enablement process.
  6. Import validated rates data from the utility and test that cost-based energy and water insights are calculated and presented as intended within the relevant web and outbound communications cloud service products.
  7. Conduct quality assurance testing on the Rate Engine using the imported, validated rates data by comparing cost insights calculated by the Rate Engine with actual sample or synthetic bills.