RMG Cements Power Industry Credit Network

RMG Cements Power Industry Credit Network As Additional Companies Join

 New companies give RMG 93% coverage of all New Zealand power users

Auckland – 16 January 2001 – Receivables management company RMG Limited (ASX/NZSE: RMG) has reached agreement with a further three major power companies to supply online credit reporting services. These companies join the majority of the power industry who signed up last month with RMG as their sole credit information supplier.

RMG chief executive Paul Cooney said the new agreement would significantly reduce the opportunity for customers to avoid payment of power bills by regularly switching companies.

“Now that we are able to facilitate the exchange of credit information on over 90 per cent of all energy customers, defaulters will find that they can run but they can’t hide. We hope to have 100 per cent customer coverage by the time the service goes live in February.

“This initiative will save the power industry millions of dollars a year, with the potential for a 10-15 per cent reduction in the level of bad debt write-offs the industry incurs annually,” said Mr Cooney.

“Given the considerable savings for the power industry, this initiative will also have positive income implications for RMG,” Mr Cooney said.

RMG CreditNet is on track to be able to exchange credit information between participating companies by the end of February. The database and accompanying business rules are currently being developed in liaison with the power companies. Prior to deployment, a full review by an independent privacy consultant will be undertaken to ensure compliance with all credit information and privacy legislation.

The database service will use an Internet platform through which the power companies will be able receive and share customer credit information.

Nigel Hamilton, CreditNet Product Manager for New Zealand, said RMG’s CreditNet service will create significant efficiencies when customers switch from one power company to another.

“Managing the exit and entry of the 250,000 customers who switch power suppliers each year is a considerable challenge for power companies. The use of modern online tools, allowing for effective communication and information exchange, can achieve substantial efficiencies.

“RMG CreditNet’s ability to offer power suppliers an online service will make a real difference in the effective management of customer relationships,” said Mr Hamilton.

Following a decision last year by power suppliers to work together as one group on credit information, RMG was selected as the single preferred supplier.

The RMG CreditNet service is the first in the credit information sector to pioneer the use of online technology in an industry-based model, allowing for easy modification and flexibility in meeting changing customer and industry requirements. The technology model also ensures speed to market and ready deployment to other industries.

“This valuable initiative significantly enhances our ability to deliver high quality up-to-date consumer credit information and we expect to introduce further innovations in the energy market over the coming months,” said Mr Hamilton.

Ends

Editors’ notes:

About RMG
RMG is the first Trans-Tasman Company to offer an integrated range of receivables, debt management, and credit reporting under a single umbrella. The company was formed by the merger of a number of receivables management companies in Australia and New Zealand. With over 650 staff with 28 offices in Australia, New Zealand and Asia, RMG is the largest receivables management company in Australasia.
Services include traditional debt recovery and receivables management, credit information and database management services, debt purchasing, factoring, ledger management and complete outsourcing of a company’s receivables function through leading edge internet-enabled technology.

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