Dive Brief:

• Costs related to a software system National Grid installed in the wake of Hurricane Sandy have skyrocketed to almost $1 billion from an original estimate of $384 million.
• An audit released by the New York Public Service Commission finds the utility mishandled the implementation of the SAP system in 2011.
• The utility's parent company, London-based National Grid PLC, has agreed to absorb the costs, but state regulators say they still want a full accounting for the botched rollout.

Dive Insight:

State regulators in New York have released an audit of the National Grid gas companies, but a significant portion of the report deals with the failed launch of a new software system by the company three years ago. According to a statement released by regulators alongside the audit, "the company’s efforts to remediate and stabilize the software system have been extensive and costly, the costs for which the company shareholders will pay."

Energy Central reports that the audit advocates for stronger leadership at National Grid in New York, and calls for "direct reporting" between National Grid New York president Ken Daly and divisions in the state. Some National Grid divisions in the state had been reporting to the national headquarters in Massachusetts rather than the New York division.