White Papers Uncertainty is Clouding the Energy Trading Outlook | Page 7

Uncertainty is Clouding the Energy Trading Outlook

The technology implications of the new regulations are substantial, as compliance requires a constant recording of all commercial
activities, including data and information that
may have influenced or supported a trade de-

A ComTech Advisory Whitepaper

cision. As a result, energy trading companies must accurately
capture, collate, transmit, store and retrieve massive amounts
of data from numerous disparate systems, including ETRM
systems, phone, IM, exchanges, data feeds, and even social
media.

DEALING WITH UNCERTAINTY
Given the rapidly changing energy supply patterns and resultant market imbalances in the US and globally,
wholesale energy traders are having difficulty remaining abreast of the ever-changing landscape and adapting to the new physical market dynamics.

In order to profitability operate in this environment, energy traders must maintain a long
view of the market, one that allows them to
position themselves to take advantage of opportunities that may arise in the coming year
or years. But, more importantly, they must
maintain a vigilant eye on near-term developments that can impact the supply or delivery
of energy commodities and ensure they are
properly positioned to address the risks in an
uncertain market.

As market conditions evolve with the
ever-changing supply and demand balance,
and oversight becomes more intense and
invasive, visibility across all aspects of your
business must improve:

Market visibility / market awareness driven by data with a vigilant eye on
macro trends. Strategies must be formulated
around macro trends and managed on market data and real-time or near real-time analysis.

Internal visibility / profit is made
or lost on daily decisions. Accurate and timely position management, risk management
and business intelligence support is key to
ensure opportunities are optimally exploited
and risks addressed.
© Commodity Technology Advisory LLC, 2014

Regulatory visibility /regulators will be quick to
move and once on their radar, you will be a target of scrutiny
for a very long time. Developing a culture of compliance and
visibility for regulators is key to avoiding punitive attention and
actions.

Your chances of succeeding in this market will be, in
large part, dependent upon the quality of your technology infrastructure. No company can operate profitably and in compliance with regulators without the appropriate technology
systems and tools. Your IT infrastructure must be able to immediately and accurately capture the commercial activities of
your business, provide near real-time feedback as to positions
and exposures, aggregate data from many disparate sources
to assist in identifying near and long-term opportunities, and
finally, ensure that information for all those sources is accurately captured, maintained, and communicated appropriately
to ensure regulatory compliance.

The core of that IT infrastructure should be a comprehensive, multi-commodity energy trading and risk management
(ETRM) solution, such as Eka Energy. Eka’s “Smart Commodity Management” product is a fully integrated multi-commodity (ETRM) system covering the entire transaction life-cycle
from capture through confirmation, operations, settlement and
risk management. With Eka’s smart commodity management
strategy, analytics have become the core of the solution’s capabilities, providing the requisite tools to optimize positions,
limit risk and ensure compliance in an increasingly unsettled
market.