Renewables · Custom ETRM/CTRM
Designing a Custom Commodity Trading Platform
A renewables trading business needed to track PPAs and REC transfers alongside physical generation positions - a combination that didn't map cleanly onto any standard ETRM module.
The Challenge
The business had evaluated several enterprise ETRM platforms, but each required extensive customization to represent PPA structures and environmental attribute tracking, pushing licensing and implementation cost well beyond what the trading volume justified.
Existing Environment
Trade and contract data was managed across a combination of spreadsheets and a generic contract management tool, with no unified position or exposure view.
Root Cause
The business's trading model - PPAs with embedded shape risk, REC transfers as a distinct tradable instrument, and intermittent generation positions - didn't correspond to the trade types most ETRM platforms are built around.
Solution
We designed and built a purpose-specific application covering reference data, contract management, position tracking and reporting, modeled directly around PPA and REC structures rather than adapted from a generic commodity trade type. The platform integrated with the business's existing accounting system for settlement rather than rebuilding that function.
Custom platform scope
Implementation
- Ran structured requirements workshops with trading, contracts and finance stakeholders
- Designed a data model native to PPA and REC structures
- Built the application in phases, starting with contract and position tracking
- Integrated with the existing accounting system via API for settlement
- Delivered training and documentation for the internal team
Result
- The business had a single system of record for PPAs, RECs and generation positions for the first time
- Implementation cost and timeline were substantially lower than the enterprise ETRM alternatives evaluated
- The platform could evolve incrementally as new contract structures were added
Technologies
Lessons Learned
- When a trading model doesn't map cleanly onto standard ETRM trade types, forcing the fit often costs more in customization than building a purpose-specific tool.
- Integrating with existing accounting for settlement, rather than rebuilding it, kept scope focused on the part of the problem that was actually unsolved.
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