Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening Time (IDCZGOT)

Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening Time (IDCZGOT) is the point in time where cross-zonal capacity between bidding zones is released for a given market time unit and a given bidding zone border (Article 2(38) of the Regulation establishing a Guideline on Capacity Allocation and Congestion Management - CACM (Regulation on market coupling).

The harmonisation of the IDCZGOT is a key element of an efficient Single Intraday Coupling (SIDC).

The European energy market regulators consider IDCZGOT as one of the most important market design feature of the SIDC because the sooner the IDCZGOT is set, the more opportunities for market participants to optimise their portfolios exist (ACER/CEER Annual Report of 22 October 2018 on the Results of Monitoring the Internal Electricity and Natural Gas Markets in 2017, Electricity Wholesale Markets Volume, p. 55).

Pursuant to the All Transmission System Operators’ (TSOs') proposal od 18 April 2016 for intraday cross-zonal gate opening and gate closure times (Draft for consultation, Article 4, p. 5) Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening Time was proposed to be 22.00 market time day ahead. 

However, ACER supported the establishment of a EU-wide harmonised IDCZGOT at 15:00 D-1 (Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening and Gate Closure Times, ACER’s Consultation document, PC_2018_E_01, 9 January 2018, p. 5).

The amended TSO’s proposal defined regionally (CCR) harmonised IDCZGOTs for bidding zone borders ranging from 15:00 market time day-ahead to 22:00 market time day-ahead.

The final detemination in this regard was made in the Decision of Agency of Cooperation of Energy Regulation No 04/2018 of 24 April 2018 on all Transmission System Operators’ Proposal for Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening and Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Closure Times.

In the said Decision the Agency decided that, the intraday cross-zonal market on all bidding zone borders shall open at 15:00 market time day-ahead (Central European Time - CET).

The ACER’s Decision established the harmonised IDCZGOT just after the end of the day-ahead timeframe and the Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Closure Time (IDCZGCT) 60 minutes before real time.

This, in the ACER’s opinion, provides ample time for market participants to trade across bidding-zone borders in the European Union.

Moreover, the said Decision enables all market participants in the European Union to have access to available cross-zonal capacities within the same period.

The above harmonised IDCZGOT is defined as the starting time for the SIDC operation and the time when TSOs start releasing cross-zonal capacity.

The necessary condition for the implementation of the harmonised IDCZGOT is the approval of the intraday capacity calculation methodology (this methodology determines how much cross-zonal capacity TSOs are able to offer at the IDCZGOT in order to comply with the operational security).

This is the reason why the implementation date of harmonised IDZCGOT has been indicated by the ACER as 1 January 2019 or one month after the approval of of the intraday capacity calculation methodology, whichever comes later.

Within the legal framework of the CACM Regulation the gate opening for intraday trading within the bidding zone and for complementary regional intraday auctions in accordance with Article 63 of the CACM Regulation are outside the scope of the ACER’s Decision on IDCZGOT.

In the reasons to the said Decision the Agency indicated that although the EU-wide harmonisation of IDCZGOTs is not explicitly required by Article 59 of the CACM Regulation, the harmonisation is needed to meet the objectives of the CACM Regulation.

Moreover, the Agency finds it important that the TSOs and regulatory authorities strive towards the harmonisation of all the related timelines such that internal and cross-zonal intraday gate opening times gradually converge towards the target solution of 15:00 market time day-ahead.

In the ACER’s view the harmonisation of the IDCZGOTs is essential to avoid discrimination in the time of access to the network between, on the one hand, market participants trading across bidding zones and thus requesting access to cross-zonal capacity and, on the other hand, market participants trading inside bidding zones and thus requesting access to internal network.

Since this discrimination will exist until all internal intraday gate opening times - which are not in the scope of the said ACER’s Decision No 04/2018 – in all bidding zones are equal to the IDCZGOT, the Agency finds it important that timeframe for cross-zonal trade should be aligned with the timeframe for trading inside bidding zones to the maximum extent possible.

Finally, the IDCZGOTs, as proposed in the TSO’s amended proposal, would imply a difference of seven hours between the earliest IDCZGOT and the latest IDCZGOT in the various CCRs.

This would, in the Agency’s view, have generally disruptive effect on the operation of the intraday market and would create a confusion among market participants to organise their activities and, in particular, to understand price formation at a specific moment.

ACER concluded that the intraday cross-zonal gate opening time 15:00 market time day-ahead represents a balance between the need for some market participants, on the one hand, to finalise their processes (e.g. portfolio optimisation, scheduling), resulting from the day-ahead market and, on the other hand, to adjust their day-ahead positions in the intraday electricity market as soon as possible.

For the time being, several IDCZGOTs are applied throughout Europe, nevertheless, the said ACER’s Decision of 24 April 2018 is expected to have a positive impact on intra-day liquidity in the future.

The extent thereof will depend largely on the ability of TSOs to release cross-border capacity at that point in time, including the release of more than the ‘left-overs’ of the day-ahead electricity market via a recalculation of intraday cross-zonal capacity (ACER/CEER Annual Report of 22 October 2018, p. 55).

    Regulatory chronicle

April 2018

The ACER adopted a decision

October 2017

All regulatory authorities referred the proposal for the intraday cross-zonal gate opening and intraday cross-zonal gate closure times to the ACER for a decision in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 9(12) of the CACM Regulation (the reason for the referral was that they were not able to come to an agreement on the proposal)

September 2017

All TSOs submitted to all regulatory authorities and the Agency an amended proposal for the intraday cross-zonal gate opening and closure time

December 2016

All TSOs submitted to all regulatory authorities and the Agency a proposal for the intraday cross-zonal gate opening and closure time

Decision of Agency of Cooperation of Energy Regulation No 04/2018 of 24 April 2018 on all Transmission System Operators’ Proposal for Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening and Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Closure Times

Annex I

Regulation establishing a Guideline on Capacity Allocation and Congestion Management - CACM (Regulation on market coupling), Articles 2(38), 51(1), 58(1), 59, 63(2), 63(4)(d)

All TSOs' proposal for intraday cross-zonal gate opening and gate closure times in accordance with Article 59 of Commission Regulation (EU) 2015/1222 of 24 July 2015 establishing a guideline on capacity allocation and congestion management, 18 April 2016 – Draft for consultation, Article 4, p. 5

Intraday Cross-Zonal Gate Opening and Gate Closure Times, ACER’s Consultation document, PC_2018_E_01, 9 January 2018