CGI (NYSE: GIB) (TSX: GIB.A) today announces it has signed a three year contract including a two year extension option, with ELEXON, the industry-funded company that administers the wholesale electricity balancing and settlement arrangements for Great Britain. CGI has been providing Business Process and IT Outsourcing services to ELEXON for the last 15 years and under the terms of this new agreement CGI will operate, maintain and manage all ELEXON’s core applications whilst migrating them to its Cloud in order to deliver increased flexibility and scalability. ELEXON currently handles large amounts of data including settlement of over 5,700 daily wholesale electricity trades, 1.25 million daily meter readings and settlement of over £1.4 billion of customer funds annually.
The electricity industry is preparing for the introduction of smart meters in the UK, which may mean ELEXON’s settlement processes move from an estimated model to one that works based on actual, near real-time consumption data. Similarly, European regulators are considering new rules that could see wholesale electricity settlement applied to 15-minute increments rather than the 30-minute increments currently used in the UK. Such potential changes in the industry mean that ELEXON needed a flexible and scalable core IT infrastructure to support its core applications.
Mark Bygraves, CEO of ELEXON commented: “The UK electricity market is undergoing critical changes that mean we, as a key partner to the wholesale industry, need to invest in our core IT infrastructure to continue delivering outstanding service.” He continued: “This outsourced agreement with CGI provides significant expertise, capability and a modern, scalable infrastructure at highly competitive rates. We will save over £1m annually in our fixed IT running costs, which is great news for our customers and demonstrates ELEXON’s ability to continue to deliver value for money to the industry.”
As part of the agreement CGI will deliver a wide range of outsourced IT and Business Process services including provision of ELEXON’s customer service desk, central market industry processes and end of day settlement processes, infrastructure and network hosting and application management and development Services.
Tara McGeehan, Vice President of UK Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications, CGI commented: “We are delighted to have extended the scope of our work with ELEXON, which delivers absolutely critical services that keep the UK’s electricity market moving. Our core competency in managing, maintaining and improving complex applications combined with the highly scalable nature of our Cloud offering together with our deep industry knowledge, means we are well placed to help ELEXON prepare for a period of significant change in the UK electricity sector.”
CGI recently announced that it has been contracted to build and manage the central market infrastructure for the UK water sector by Market Operator Services Ltd, the company established by the government to facilitate the introduction of competition to the UK water market. CGI is also the IT partner for the Data Communications Company, the body supporting the UK-wide introduction of smart meters by linking them to the IT systems of the UK’s energy companies.
About CGI
Founded in 1976, CGI Group Inc. is the fifth largest independent information technology and business process services firm in the world. Approximately 65,000 professionals serve thousands of global clients from offices and delivery centers across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific, leveraging a comprehensive portfolio of services including high-end business and IT consulting, systems integration, application development and maintenance, infrastructure management as well as 150 IP-based services and solutions. With annual revenue in excess of C$10 billion and an order backlog exceeding C$20 billion, CGI shares are listed on the TSX (GIB.A) and the NYSE (GIB). Website: www.cgi.com.
About ELEXON
ELEXON is vital to the smooth operation of the wholesale electricity market. ELEXON compare how much electricity generators and suppliers said they would produce or consume with actual volumes and work out a price for the difference and transfer funds accordingly. The rules are set out in the Balancing and Settlement Code (BSC). ELEXON administer the Code and provide and procure the services needed to implement it. Their expertise and impartiality give customers the confidence that the BSC operates efficiently and accurately.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements in this press release that do not directly and exclusively relate to historical facts constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are “forward-looking information” within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. These statements and this information represent CGI’s intentions, plans, expectations and beliefs, and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, of which many are beyond the control of the Company. These factors could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. These factors include but are not restricted to: the timing and size of new contracts; acquisitions and other corporate developments; the ability to attract and retain qualified members; market competition in the rapidly evolving IT industry; general economic and business conditions; foreign exchange and other risks identified in the press release, in CGI’s annual and quarterly Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”), in CGI’s Annual Report, in CGI’s Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (filed on EDGAR at www.sec.gov), and in the Company’s Annual Information Form filed with the Canadian securities authorities (filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com), as well as assumptions regarding the foregoing. The words “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “foresee,” “plan,” and similar expressions and variations thereof, identify certain of such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. In particular, statements relating to future performance are forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. CGI disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements or on this forward-looking information.
For more information
Investors and media
Lorne Gorber
Executive Vice-President, Global Communications and Investor Relations
lorne.gorber@cgi.com
+1 514-841-3355
Local media
Janine Bailey
Vice President, UK Marketing & Communications
janine.bailey@cgi.com
+44 7766 420850
