Where does the data displayed on my graphs come from?
Data comes from our half hourly billing system, at a point in the process after we have validated your meter readings for accuracy and generated your half hourly bill.
This means that the electrical and financial information we display on the graphs will generally match what we have billed you for your half hourly sites. Graphs will be available after we have generated your monthly bill.
Graphs are only available for sites that have half hourly meters installed. No graphs are available for non half hourly metered sites.
What is the difference between Time of Use (half hourly) and Non Time of Use (non half hourly) sites?
Time of Use (TOU) sites have a special meter installed at them that record electricity every half hour. Premises that have TOU meters installed typically use a great deal more electricity per year than Non Time of Use (NTOU) sites, and have more complicated price structures associated with them.
Why can’t I graph any of my NTOU information?
Currently Business Online only allows you to graph information for your TOU sites.
What period of data can I graph?
The most recent data comes from meter readings on your most recent TOU bill.
We keep up to three years of meter readings for you to graph or download.
How do problems with my bill affect graphs?
If we issue a credit note and re-bill you, the Online Graphs will change to display the corrected data. This will happen after we have generated your TOU bill.
Why does the half-hourly information displayed on the graphs not exactly match the costs on my monthly bill?
The graphs do not display energy fees such as margin on Spot Prices or charges for network losses and metering.
If we were to include these in the graphs, the data would not be consistent and be confusing.
What can I do with the graphs?
You can:
understand the data that makes up you TOU bill in more detail
track usage half-hourly through the day, week or month
identify trends by aggregating data across your sites, or over time
see when the electricity peaks are, and by overlaying rates or costs, you will see what days and times are the most expensive
monitor your Contract Prices and compare with average Spot Prices
monitor your Nominated Volume contract and compare Actual Volume with Contracted Volume - You can also see when the peaks occurred and the times when you are exposed to Spot Price volatility
manage future network charges by reducing monthly peaks
use the data yourself by downloading it into your own programmes for further analysis or cut and paste graphs you have created straight into your monthly reports.
How will the graphs benefit me or my company?
If you can rearrange production schedules or start-up times for your plant, you can reduce overall costs:
you can reduce future network demand costs by reducing kVA peaks
you can shift load into cheaper periods
depending on your contract, you can tailor your exposure to volatile Spot Prices, and trade-off certainty of cost with lower prices
select the best contract for your business by using the data to understand your electricity consumption patterns
understand the impact reactive load has on overall costs and investment value to reduce future network costs.
Are there charges for accessing this information?
At this stage Business Online is free, but as it evolves and services are added, (like online bill payments), then a charge may be applied in the future.
How do I change my password?
If you forget your password you can request a new one by clicking 'Forgotten Password' on the login screen, or alternatively email us at BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz or call your account manager.
You'll be asked to enter your username and email address and the system will validate these details and email you a new password soon after.
When you login for the first time you'll be asked to change your password.
Is there a standard format for passwords?
Your password is case sensitive, it must be at least eight characters long – it needs to include:
* one uppercase character
* one lowercase character
* one number
I can't change my username what do I do?
Because your username is the key identifier of your Business Online account, for security reasons you cannot change it online.
Please email us at BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz or call your account manager and we'll discuss your requirements with you.
I don't have access to all of my company's data?
Please email us at BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz or call your account manager.
We can then set your access details to meet your requirements.
What levels of access are available?
There are two levels of access available to view company data:
Parent ID Access – all ICP's or sites for a given Customer Parent ID can be accessed
ICP Access – selected ICP's or sites are assigned individually, and only those assigned can be accessed.
What does the term 'Parent ID' mean?
Parent ID is a purely a Meridian Energy term that we use internally. It's a number which identifies a single customer within Business Online.
It relates to the highest level of a customer's structure within our system, below this there may exist one or many relevant customer accounts/ICP's, depending on the size of that company.
If I enter the wrong password will I get locked out of the system?
The system will lock you out after three failed password attempts.
If this happens please email us at BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz or call your account manager and we'll reset your password.
I have been asked to accept Business Online Terms of Use, but I was not asked this when I first signed on, why is this?
When you first started using Business Online the electricity financial and usage data wasn't as up to date as it is now.
Meridian Energy wants to ensure that you're fully aware that this information, while being as close as possible to your actual invoice, is not complete.
The final amount could vary from that of the invoice that you receive in the mail.
Why would the financial information change?
The electricity financial and usage information you receive on Business Online will be the same as your final invoice in the vast majority of instances (approx 95% of the time).
However in some cases your final invoice may change by the time you receive it in the mail. Reasons for this include reversals or rounding variances.
How do I subscribe to email alerts?
From the 'My Profile' screen tick the box to subscribe to 'Email alerts' then click 'Apply'.
You'll receive an email when the new bill data is available at Business Online. If you experience any problems please contact your account manager.
Why can't I pay my bill online?
Meridian Energy's infrastructure is unable to support online bill payments at the moment.
However, we are very aware that you would like to be able to pay your bills online and we are working towards this happening in the future.
Can I give feedback online and how do I do this?
Yes. The Business Online Homepage has a link to the Business Online email address. Your comments will be passed to the appropriate person for handling.
Alternatively you can contact your account manager if you have any questions.
Do I need a special browser or firewalls to install business online?
Business Online is designed to work on most major internet browsers. No special security or downloads are required to view the system once you have been set up as a user by your account manager.
Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox are the two main browsers used to support Business Online.
I want to give a consultant access, what do I need to do?
Please email us at BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz or call your account manager and we'll arrange this for you.
We'll also need written authorisation from you and we'll need to discuss with you access options available.
Can I talk to someone about the Business Online services?
Yes, we are here to help. Please contact your account manager at Meridian or BusinessOnline@meridianenergy.co.nz.