OREANDA-NEWS. On 04 March 2008 was announced, that the basic topic of the meeting held in Moscow was issues of application of methodical instructions on definition of the payment for technological connection (TC) approved by the Federal Tariffs Service on October 23, 2007.

The meeting was initiated and held by IDGC of Centre. The management company was represented by Evgeniy Bronnikov, Deputy General Director for Economy and Finance, Vadim Fedorov, Deputy General Director for realization of grid services, Ravil Aliaskarov, Chief of the Department for Technological Connection Management and Vasily Potapov, Chief of the Tariff Formation Department. The experts of economic services, experts for realisation of grid services of the Centre’s companies, and representatives of the regional regulatory bodies from the Company's presence regions were invited to Moscow.
In the autumn of 2007, by Order of the FTS of Russia, new methodical instructions on definition of payment for technological connection in Russia were introduced. They also took into account proposals of IDGC of Centre. Performances of each speaker were devoted to right understanding and realisation of methodical instructions.

'Before the given methods were introduced, all regions had applied different approaches’, Vadim Fyodorov commented. 'Our task is to approach introduction of the method so that to reach uniform understanding between participants of the process - the network company and regulatory bodies. All the public, the investment society wishes to make the TC procedure transparent, visible, and clear. IDGC-1 stands for the idea to exclude deviation from the procedures vested in the law'.

The form of meeting included a reporting (official) part and active discussion within the limits of a business game. Round table discussion was organised according to the principle of presence of representatives from different regions; they allowed to obtain a new vision of the problem. Representatives of regulating bodies and network organizations jointly investigated real situations accompanying the process of establishment of payment for TC, and offered variants of these issues settlement. As a result, a real discussion took place between the groups.

'There were a lot of questions’, Vasily Potapov said. 'In particular, they were received from Bryansk, Yaroslavl, and Voronezh. Vladimir Chepelev, the representative of the Commission for the State Prices and Tariffs Regulation in the Belgorod area, shared positive experience in interaction between administration of the region and the network company related to establishment and application of payment for TC. During the meeting, we outlined new questions requiring additional study. They are, in particular, some nuances in the legislation basis to be worked out jointly with regulators'.

'It is Regional Power Commission that influences balance of sources of regions development and investment programs financing', Vadim Fedorov said. ‘This is good when regional regulatory bodies see our problems and contribute to their settlement. But if the regulatory body does not pay attention to our problem, this means that our purpose is not achieved. We wish to remove this risk. Similar meetings are aimed at being heard. The larger is the understanding between us, the more quickly problems are solved connected with point deficiency of the attached capacity, favorable conditions for connection of clients to our networks and convenient terms.

Similar meetings have regular character. A year ago the first meeting between IDGC and RPC on the given topic was held. Within 2007 a large-scale work was held according to the results of the meeting. The issues which appeared a year ago have been settled. Now they are being actually realised. The following meeting (in 2009) will be devoted to results of methodical instructions application.

These meetings are accompanied by meetings with deputy governors of areas which are initiated by IDGC of Centre on a regular basis. Thus, on 13-14 March, IDGC-1 will hold a meeting between representatives of constituent entities of the Russian Federation and Interregional Distribution Grid Company of Centre dedicated to both the results of the last year and results of the actions held.

The organisers are contented with the course of the meeting and involvement of participants in the process of discussion. Exchange of ideas has taken place, necessity of the meeting is evident, the opinions have been heard.