Christchurch’s Jade Software has gone live with a $1 million project to create the New Zealand gas industry’s first customer registry and account reconciliation system.

The Gas Registry, developed on behalf of Wellington-based industry body Gas Industry Company (GIC), went live on 1 March. It establishes a central repository of data relating to all gas connections, including retailers, distributors and meter owners.

Designed to improve consumer choice by reducing barriers to switching suppliers, the Gas Registry also provides certainty for market participants during change-over, including reconciling gas accounts between retailers.

Switching, where a customer changes from one retailer to another, previously relied on an improvised industry-based arrangement.

This, however, lacked enforceable timeframes. With the combination of the new Gas (Switching Arrangements) Rules 2008, which were approved and came into full effect in March 2008, and the automation that the new Gas Registry provides, GIC expects that the process of switching retailers will be now achieved more efficiently.

A spokesman for Jade Software says it cost GIC around $1 million to establish, and that the company has a five-year, $400,000 a year ongoing contract with Jade.