A Meter Point Administration Number, also known as MPAN, Supply Number or S-Number, is a 21-digit reference used in Great Britain to uniquely identify electricity supply points such as individual domestic properties. The system was introduced in 1998 to aid creation of a competitive environment for electricity supply companies, and assists consumers to switch their supplier as well as simplifying administration. Although the name suggests that an MPAN refers to a particular meter, an MPAN can have several meters associated with it, or none where it is an unmetered supply. A supply receiving power from the distribution network operator (DNO) has an import MPAN, while generation and microgeneration projects feeding back into the DNO network are given export MPANs.

The equivalent for gas supplies is the Meter Point Reference Number and the water/wastewater equivalent for non-household customers is the Supply Point ID.

Structure

An MPAN is commonly separated into two sections: the core and the top line data. The core is the final 13 digits and is the unique identifier. The top line data gives information about the characteristics of the supply and is the responsibility of the supplier.

The full MPAN is required to be depicted on electricity bills (the boxes on the top and bottom line are generally unaligned).

The core data is on the second line, with supplementary data on the first line. Only the last digit on the bottom row is the check digit.

Profile Class (PC)

The first two digits of a full MPAN reflect its profile class. 00 Half-hourly supply (import and export) 01 Domestic unrestricted 02 Domestic Economy meter of two or more rates 03 Non-domestic unrestricted 04 Non-domestic Economy 7 05 Non-domestic, with maximum demand (MD) recording capability and with load factor (LF) less than or equal to 20% 06 Non-domestic, with MD recording capability and with LF less than or equal to 30% and greater than 20% 07 Non-domestic, with MD recording capability and with LF less than or equal to 40% and greater than 30% 08 Non-domestic, with MD recording capability and with LF greater than 40% (also all non-half-hourly export MSIDs)

Profile class 00 supplies are half-hourly (HH) metered, i.e. they record electricity consumption for every half hour of every day, and supplies of the other profile classes are non-half-hourly (NHH) metered. A NHH supply must be upgraded to HH where:

Half-hourly data is recorded by the meter and collected by an onsite download, or by remote communication methods such as GSM, SMS, GPRS or telephone line.

Domestic NHH import MPANs always have a profile class of 01 or 02. Domestic NHH export MPANs are allocated a profile class of 08.

When the Metering System is migrated into the Marketwide Half-Hourly Settlement (MHHS) arrangements, the following appliesR0083 R0083: Continue as currently for MPANs with a Profile Class of ‘02’ or ‘04’ or populate with ‘00’ for any MPANs that do not have a Profile Class

Meter Time Switch Code (MTC) The MTC is a three-digit code that reflects the various registers a meter may have, such as a single rate, day/night split, or a seasonal time of day. + MTC Ranges 001–399 DNO specific 400–499 Reserved 500–509 Codes for related Metering Systems – common across the Industry 510–799 Codes for related Metering Systems – DNO specific 800–999 Codes common across the Industry When the Metering System is migrated into the Marketwide Half-Hourly Settlement (MHHS) arrangements, the following appliesR0083 R0083: Populate from the SSC Id valid set for Traditional Meters or Populate with ‘0000’ for any MPANs for which the SSC Id is not applicable

Line Loss Factor Class (LLFC)

The Line Loss Factor Class or LLFC is an alphanumeric code used to identify the related Distribution Use of System (DUoS) charges for the MPAN. The figure reflects both the amount of distribution infrastructure used to supply the exit point and the amount of energy lost through heating of cables, transformers, etc.

Core The MPAN core is the final 13 digits of the MPAN, and uniquely identifies an exit point. It consists of a two-digit Distributor ID, followed by an eight-digit unique identifier, then two digits and a single check digit.

Distributor ID

Great Britain is divided into fourteen distribution areas. For each area a single company, the distribution network operator, has a licence to distribute electricity. They effectively carry electricity from the National Grid to the exit points (each having a unique MPAN and a possibility of several meters) where the customers are. The owner of the distribution network charges electricity suppliers for carrying the electricity in their network. Their DNO licensed regions are the same geographic areas as the former nationalised electricity boards.

+ DNOs ID Name Operator Phone Number Market Participant ID GSP Group ID 10 Eastern England UK Power Networks 0800 029 4285 EELC _A 11 East Midlands National Grid (formerly Western Power Distribution) 0800 096 3080 EMEB _B 12 London UK Power Networks 0800 029 4285 LOND _C 13 Merseyside and Northern Wales SP Energy Networks 0330 10 10 444 MANW _D 14 West Midlands National Grid (formerly Western Power Distribution) 0800 096 3080 MIDE _E 15 North Eastern England Northern Powergrid 0800 011 3332 NEEB _F 16 North Western England Electricity North West 0800 048 1820 NORW _G 17 Northern Scotland Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks 0800 048 3516 HYDE _P 18 Southern Scotland SP Energy Networks 0330 10 10 444 SPOW _N 19 South Eastern England UK Power Networks 0800 029 4285 SEEB _J 20 Southern England Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks 0800 048 3516 SOUT _H 21 Southern Wales National Grid (formerly Western Power Distribution) 0800 096 3080 SWAE _K 22 South Western England National Grid (formerly Western Power Distribution) 0800 096 3080 SWEB _L 23 Yorkshire Northern Powergrid 0800 011 3332 YELG _M

In addition to the distribution network operators noted above who are licensed for a specific geographic area, there are also independent distribution network operators (IDNOs). These own and operate electricity distribution networks which are mostly extensions of the main network, e.g. to serve new housing developments.

Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution also provide distribution services in South Scotland as an IDNO, and Southern Electric Power Distribution provide IDNO services in all other areas of England and Wales (both of these are trading names of Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks). Other IDNOs have no "base" area.

+Independent Distribution Network Operators ID Name Licensee Market Participant Id 24 GTC Independent Power Networks Limited IPNL 25 ESP Electricity ESP Electricity LENG 26 Last Mile / Energetics (Formerly) Last Mile Electricity Limited GUCL 27 GTC The Electricity Network Company Ltd ETCL 28 EDF IDNO UK Power Networks (IDNO) Ltd EDFI (no longer live)29Harlaxton Energy Networks LtdHARL30Leep Electricity Networks LtdPENL31UK Power Distributions LtdUKPD 32 Energy Assets Networks Energy Assets Networks Ltd UDNL 33 EPN Eclipse Power Networks Ltd GGEN 34 Murphy Power Distribution Limited MPDL 35 Fulcrum Electricity Assets Fulcrum Electricity Assets Ltd FEAL36Vattenfall NetworksVattenfall Network LimitedVATT37Forbury Assets LimitedForbury Assets LimitedFORB38Indigo Power LimitedIndigo Power LimitedINDI39Squire Energy Metering LtdSquire Energy Metering LtdSTRK40Utility Assets LimitedUtility Assets LimitedUTAL42Advanced Electricity NetworksAdvanced Electricity NetworksAENL43IDCS LtdIDCS LtdIDCS44Green GEN CymruGreen GEN CymruGGCL45Aurora Utilities LimitedAurora Utilities LimitedAURO46Aidien LimitedAidien LimitedAIDI47Vital Energi Power NetworksVital Energi Power NetworksVEPN48E.ON UK Network Assets LimitedE.ON UK Network Assets LimitedEONN51AGR Networks LtdAGR Networks LtdAGRN52Grid Line Power Networks LtdGrid Line Power Networks LtdGLPN

MPAN state

The supply identified by the MPAN can be in one of four states: disconnected, de-energised, live, and new.

Disconnected: The service cable has been removed and the MPAN will not be reused. De-energised: The service cable is in place, but the fuse has been removed. The meter remains connected to the distribution network, but no electricity can be used. Live: Both the service cable and the fuse are in place. The supply is fully operational. New: A new MPAN has been generated, however, the top line (supplementary data consisting of the Profile Class and Meter Time-Switch Code) is not yet complete. The service cable may or may not be installed.

These terms are by no means standardised. For example, a disconnected supply might be referred to as a 'dead' supply.

Export MPANs The vast majority of MPANs are import MPANs, where energy is being consumed. However, if a supply exports to the distribution network, then an export MPAN can be issued. If a supply both imports and exports, then both an import MPAN and export MPAN are issued.

Microgeneration Formerly, export MPANs required a half-hourly compliant meter to be installed. Since 2003, it has been possible for microgeneration projects with a capacity of 30 kW or below to have a non-half-hourly meter to measure export back into the distribution network. Uptake was slow, with the first microgeneration export MPAN being issued in June 2005. Some suppliers may not bother to register the export MPAN in MPAS as the revenue is so small.

Following the closure of the feed-in tariffs, in January 2020 Ofgem introduced the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) arrangements, where an export MPAN is allocated to allow a supplier to pay a customer for export of low-carbon energy.

Export capacity over 30 kW is required to be half-hourly metered. As part of the Marketwide Half Hourly Arrangements (MHHS), all export consumption will be required to be registered and settled on a half-hourly basis.

Metered Supply Point The Metered Supply Point (MSP) is the point at which the meter measuring a customer's consumption is located. It is thus also the point at which either the distribution network operator's supply, or the building network operator's lateral cable, terminates and the customer's equipment begins. In order to firmly establish a supply's MSP, the MPAN needs to be associated with a meter serial number.

Although it is common for an MPAN to be associated with one meter serial number, in some cases there is a many-to-many relationship. For example, one meter could be associated with both an import and an export MPAN, or one MPAN could be measured by three separate meters.

Metering Code of Practice + Code of PracticeSee Code Range Configuration COP10 less than 72 kW One HH whole current meter installed. Introduced in February 2009. COP5 less than 1MW One HH meter installed. COP3 1MW to 10MW Two meters installed, main and check, both recording the same load, the main meter being used for billing. COP2 10MW to 100MW Two meters installed as in COP3, but higher-accuracy class meters. COP1 > 100MW Very few sites in the UK at this level, generally power stations and connections with the National Grid.

Unmetered supplies

It is possible for small predictable supplies to be unmetered. Examples are streetlights, traffic signals, signs, bollards, telephone kiosks, CCTV and advertising displays.

For an item of equipment to be connected to the distribution network via an unmetered connection, its consumption should typically not exceed 500 watts and it should operate in a predictable manner, with no provision for it to be manually turned on/off at the end user's request. Generally the equipment would either be in operation and taking a supply of electricity 24 hours a day, or be controlled by a photocell, as is often the case for streetlights.