How Firstgas has managed New Zealand’s gas transmission data on EnergySys for two decades.
Firstgas, part of Clarus, operates New Zealand’s high-pressure gas transmission network, connecting over 300,000 homes and businesses across the country. The data behind that network, daily composition calculations, next-day allocations, and public regulatory reporting, have been managed on the EnergySys Cloud Platform since 2006.
That is two decades of operational trust in one platform.
Challenge: growing complexity, public accountability, and no room for error
Gas transmission data management is not a simple task. At Firstgas, it involves 145 daily gas composition samples across 12 formula variations, converting temperature readings into precise energy values using calorific data. It involves next-day allocation obligations across a national network. And since 2006, it has involved a legal requirement to publish accurate metering and allocation information to the public via New Zealand’s Otis portal.
That last point matters. Firstgas doesn’t just need its data to be accurate internally. They need it to be accurate enough to publish, every day, to a public-facing system that external stakeholders, including shippers, retailers, and regulators, depend on.
As the network grew, so did the complexity. More sampling points. More formula variations. More stakeholders are relying on the data. The systems behind it had to keep pace.
Solution: a configurable platform that the team owns and adapts
Firstgas selected the EnergySys Cloud Platform to manage its gas transmission data and has been running on it ever since.
The platform automates daily gas composition calculations across all 145 samples and 12 formula variations, converting field readings into energy values with the precision that public reporting demands. Processed data transfers automatically to the Otis portal for publication, removing manual steps from a process where errors carry public and regulatory consequences.
Manual meter readings collected in the field feed into EnergySys through a dedicated field data capture application, reducing the risk of transcription errors and ensuring consistent data handling from the point of collection through to final publication.
The Firstgas team configures and maintains the platform itself. As regulatory requirements have shifted and operational complexity has grown, they have adapted their EnergySys environment to match, without relying on external developers or raising IT projects for routine changes.
”We've configured EnergySys to match our exact business needs. It's a powerful tool that evolves with us.
Firstgas engineer
Outcomes: accurate, auditable, and published every day
Firstgas now runs one of the most publicly accountable gas data management operations in New Zealand on a platform that their own team owns and evolves.
- 145 daily gas composition samples processed automatically across 12 formula variations.
- D+1 allocation data published accurately to the Otis portal every day, meeting New Zealand’s regulatory transparency requirements.
- Field meter readings fed directly into the platform through a dedicated capture application, reducing manual error risk.
- The Firstgas team configures and adapts the platform itself as requirements change.
- Nearly two decades of continuous operation on EnergySys, through regulatory changes, network growth, and increasing complexity.
The bottom line.
Firstgas has been using EnergySys since 2006. In that time, the platform has handled increasing complexity, shifting regulation, and the ongoing requirement to publish accurate data to the public every single day.
For a gas transmission operator with that level of public accountability, the platform underneath the data isn’t just a tool. It’s the foundation on which everything else depends.
