February 2006 Market Clearing in the Energy Industry 48 © Copyright 2005, CCRO. All rights reserved. 9. APPENDIX B: USE OF CLEARING IN THE US ENERGY MARKETS It is generally recognized that clearing in the US energy markets has achieved substantial momentum during the past year. Recent publications highlight the dramatic increases in volumes of financially settled over-the-counter transactions cleared by NYMEX and ICE.35 In order to assess the importance of clearing to energy industry participants, the CCRO polled its members and other energy firms. The survey consisted of questions designed to gather indications36 of the extent to which participants use and benefit from clearing. Responses suggest that although participants generally believe having access to a clearing solution is (or would be) useful, participants vary widely in the extent to which they employ clearing. Responses to survey questions 1 through 5 are depicted in Figure 2-3 below. [Note that survey response were scored according to the following scale: 1 – No Need 2 – Somewhat Important 3 – Important 4 – Very Important and 5 – Critical.] 35 See, for example, Will Acworth’s article “OTC energy clearing takes off,” published in the January / February edition of Futures Industry. 36 Note that the survey provides primarily anecdotal evidence rather than statistically reliable estimates of industry behaviors.