Environmental Protection Authority Fast-track Cost Recovery on Oracle ERP Cloud
Environmental Protection Authority
The Environmental Protection Authority (Te Mana Rauhī Taiao) is New Zealand’s national environmental regulator. As a Crown agent it operates at arm’s length from Ministers, with statutory responsibilities covering hazardous substances, new organisms, the Emissions Trading Scheme and activities in the Exclusive Economic Zone.
The EPA also administers the application process established by the Fast-track Approvals Act 2024, receiving and processing applications and drawing on specialist input from other government agencies. Costs incurred by the EPA and by those partner agencies are recovered from applicants, which makes accurate, auditable cost capture a statutory requirement rather than an accounting preference.
From a 40-Day Tactical Build to a Durable Capability
The Fast-track Approvals Act 2024 gave the EPA 40 days to stand up a working cost recovery process. Working with James & Monroe, the EPA delivered a short-term tactical “Day 1” solution inside that window. It met the legislated obligation, but it was never intended to carry the regime long term.
With Day 1 obligations met, the EPA went to market for a comprehensive, durable cost recovery capability supported by modern digital tools: one that could handle multiple partner agencies, hundreds of timekeepers and a growing pipeline of applications without adding manual effort in the middle.
Business Challenges
- Day 1 solution built to a 40-day statutory deadline, not designed for long-term operation
- Cost recovery spanning several partner agencies, each with its own users, approvers and charge-out rates
- Manual handoffs between timesheet capture, invoicing, payment tracking and reporting
- No single system of record for costs incurred against an individual Fast-track application
- Partner agencies dependent on EPA staff for user administration and rate maintenance
- Audit obligations and Privacy Act 2020 requirements calling for traceable, standardised processes
- Strong preference to avoid introducing another platform and further licence cost
Extend the Platform Already in Place
The EPA selected James & Monroe on the strength of the practical solution design: extend the Oracle Fusion ERP Cloud environment the EPA already runs rather than introduce an additional platform alongside it. The Fast-track application data, the supplier records and the general ledger already lived in Oracle Fusion ERP, so building cost recovery on top of that data removed a whole class of integration and reconciliation work before it could start.
J&M’s familiarity with the wider EPA Oracle environment, built up over an engagement that began in 2017, meant the design could be validated against how the platform is actually configured and used rather than against a generic reference architecture.
Oracle ERP Supplier Portal as a Cost Recovery System
James & Monroe extended Oracle ERP Supplier Portal so that partner-agency users, who are suppliers in Oracle terms, can enter their own time and expenses against Fast-track applications. Their approvers review and authorise timesheets in the same portal, and partner agencies submit invoices to the EPA directly.
Because Fast-track application data already resides in Oracle Fusion ERP, the design validates time and expense entries against live application data at the point of entry, so effort is coded correctly the first time. Partner-agency administrators were given a self-service capability covering user onboarding and offboarding, charge-out rate maintenance and invoice status tracking, which removed the EPA from the middle of routine administration across multiple agencies.
The solution was built entirely within the EPA’s existing Oracle footprint, using Oracle Fusion PaaS extensions on Oracle Integration Cloud and Oracle Visual Builder Cloud Service, delivered between May 2025 and April 2026.
Solutions Delivered
Time & Expense Capture
Partner-agency users enter time and expenses through Oracle ERP Supplier Portal, validated against live Fast-track application data as they enter it.
Approval & Invoicing
Approvers authorise timesheets in the portal and partner agencies invoice the EPA directly, with payment tracking handled in Oracle Fusion ERP.
Partner-Agency Self-Service
Agency administrators onboard and offboard their own users, maintain charge-out rates and track invoice status without going through the EPA.
PaaS Extensions
Oracle Integration Cloud and Visual Builder Cloud Service extend the SaaS platform, keeping the solution inside the EPA’s existing Oracle licence footprint.
Cost Tracking & Reporting
Costs segmented by partner agency, application and project, giving the EPA, partner agencies and oversight bodies a consistent view of recovery against each application.
Key Benefits
Single system of record: costs against Fast-track applications are tracked and reported in one place, giving the EPA, partner agencies and oversight bodies the same numbers.
Automated cost recovery lifecycle: timesheet entry, approval, invoicing, payment tracking and reporting run end to end, removing manual handoffs and the errors that came with them.
Self-service for partner agencies: agency administrators manage their own users and charge-out rates, improving turnaround across multiple government agencies.
Audit and compliance: built-in audit trails and standardised processes support the EPA’s audit obligations and align with the Privacy Act 2020 and the EPA’s information security controls.
Faster, more predictable recovery: automated billing and payment processes improve timeliness and make cash flow more predictable.
Scalable beyond Fast-track: the design can be re-used for other cost recovery scenarios inside the EPA with no additional Oracle licence cost.
Extending the Solution
Phase 2 extends cost recovery to Fast-track panel members and conveners, adding automated withholding tax calculation and reporting to Inland Revenue.
James & Monroe
Since 2004, James & Monroe have provided Advisory, Solution Design, Implementation and Support services for Oracle ERP, Oracle EPM and Corporate Performance Management platforms across Australia, New Zealand, and Asia.