LODESTAR Corporation Delivers New Billing Capabilities to Midwest ISO.Business/Technology Editors PEABODY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 28, 2000 Independent Transmission System Operator Selects LODESTAR's BillingExpert(TM) to Handle Complex Billing Needs LODESTAR lode·star also load·star n. 1. A star, especially Polaris, that is used as a point of reference. 2. A guiding principle, interest, or ambition. Corporation, the world's leading provider of e-Business software to enable customer choice in the new energy economy, today announced that Midwest ISO (1) See ISO speed. (2) (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, Switzerland, www.iso.ch) An organization that sets international standards, founded in 1946. The U.S. member body is ANSI. (MISO) has selected LODESTAR as the billing solution for its entire transmission-driven customer base. MISO is the nation's largest independent transmission system operator. As part of the agreement, MISO will utilize LODESTAR's BillingExpert(TM) software product for accurate and on-time billing of the unique and complex billing needs mandated by MISO's multiple jurisdictions. As an independent transmission system operator, MISO will provide non-discriminatory open access to electricity and serve as the regional hub for the flow of electricity in 13 Midwest states. MISO will utilize BillingExpert to track commercial transactions, archive, retrieve and track important customer information, and oversee collection and disbursement DISBURSEMENT. Literally, to take money out of a purse. Figuratively, to pay out money; to expend money; and sometimes it signifies to advance money. 2. of transmission revenues. "LODESTAR's BillingExpert is being used to implement a new billing system for us in less than 90 days," said Brian Carlson, MISO's Integrated Control Center System (ICCS ICCS International Conference on Conceptual Structures ICCS International Council for Canadian Studies (Conseil International d'Études Canadiennes) ICCS International Council for Canadian Studies ) project manager. "LODESTAR understood exactly what MISO needed from day one and is assisting to configure See configuration. (software) configure - A program by Richard Stallman to discover properties of the current platform and to set up make to compile and install gcc. Cygnus configure was a similar system developed by K. BillingExpert to meet our customer billing requirements." Within MISO's area, companies wishing to transmit electric power over the transmission system are charged a single rate regardless of how many transmission owners' lines are used. Because MISO acts as an agent for the transmission owners, the fees it receives from transmission users are allocated back to transmission owners. LODESTAR is customizing BillingExpert to calculate periodic statements of incurred costs and revenues, and to issue invoices. In addition, BillingExpert's architecture allows it to integrate tightly with other systems in the MISO control center. "MISO selected LODESTAR's BillingExpert to resolve their complex billing scenarios," said Chris Hamilos, LODESTAR's chairman & CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. . "As deregulation Deregulation The reduction or elimination of government power in a particular industry, usually enacted to create more competition within the industry. Notes: Traditional areas that have been deregulated are the telephone and airline industries. of the energy industry continues throughout North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. and other areas of the world, LODESTAR is fully committed (Law) committed to prison for trial, in distinction from being detained for examination. See also: Fully to providing the mission-critical software required by ISOs and Retail Transmission Operators to enable Customer Choice. Already, we are providing BillingExpert to ISOs and RTOs including the Energy Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT ERCOT Electric Reliability Council Of Texas, Inc. ), Salt River Project and BC Hydro BC Hydro and Power Authority is one of the largest electric utilities in Canada, serving more than 1.7 million customers[2] in an area containing over 94 per cent of British Columbia's population is mandated to provide, "reliable power, at low cost, for generations. ." LODESTAR is assisting MISO to implement BillingExpert within MISO's Integrated Control Center System (ICCS) at its headquarters in Carmel, Indiana Carmel (IPA: [ˈkɑɹ.ml̩]) is a city in Hamilton County, Indiana, United States. The population was 37,733 at the 2000 census but has been growing very rapidly. . The implementation began on October 1, with completion scheduled for December 15 of this year. MISO is expected to begin market trials on June 1, 2001, with full operation scheduled for Nov. 1, 2001. About Midwest ISO Midwest ISO is the nation's largest ISO, controlling the transmission of bulk electric power across a quarter million square miles A square mil is a unit of area, equal to the area of a square with sides of length one mil. A mil is one thousandth of an international inch. This unit of area is usually used in specifying the area of the cross section of a wire or cable. . Midwest ISO controls more than 52,000 miles of transmission lines, 78,000 megawatts of generation, and more than $8 billion in installed assets. It is the first ISO to be formed voluntarily at the initiative of independent transmission-owning utilities instead of through legal mandate or as an outgrowth of existing power pools. About the LODESTAR Corporation With more than 100 clients in North America, LODESTAR is a leading global provider of e-Business software to enable customer choice in the new energy economy. Approximately 20 percent of all energy flowing in the U.S. is currently billed and tracked by LODESTAR. The LODESTAR Customer Choice Suite family of solutions provides the world's most complete, flexible, scalable and reliable Web-enabled software to competitive retail companies, transmission companies, generation companies, regulated distribution companies and independent system operators. LODESTAR also provides several highly configurable software solutions for companies looking to develop new business solutions for the deregulated economy: -- PricingExpert--enables users to create virtually any pricing scenario across industry segments. -- RateExpert--allows users to access rate, load and customer demographic data. -- BillingExpert--enables customers to bill their residential, commercial and industrial customers using complex rates for multiple jurisdictions. For more information about LODESTAR, please visit www.lodestarcorp.com or call (888) 225-1293. Except for the historical information contained herein, this press release contains forward-looking statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. that involve risks and uncertainties. The success of the agreements and products described above and the future operating results of LODESTAR Corporation may differ from the results discussed or forecasted in the forward-looking statements due to factors that include, but are not limited to, risks associated with the eBusiness software applications market, dependence on the Internet, risks associated with new versions and new products and risks associated with rapid technological change. PricingExpert, RateExpert, BillingExpert and LODESTAR are all trademarks of LODESTAR Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. |
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