Article by:
Need to Sort
Lots of businesses have a bad habit of leaving the review of their energy contracts until the last moment. When they finally realise that they should have started investigating earlier, they start to panic and often are forced into a situation where they will take the first offer that half-hourly electricity suppliers will offer for example.
Energy is possibly one of the largest overheads that a business will have. According to the Office for National Statistics, electricity prices have doubled over the last decade and natural gas prices have tripled.
While businesses know that they need to save money by having either gas and electricity audits and also Business Water Audits and engaging a business energy procurement specialist they do not usually give more precedence to other areas of the business.
Within many organisations it is often the more visible and physical elements such as marketing and leases for business equipment tend to be towards the top of the “pile” when it comes to cost-cutting measures in business.
Energy can often be seen as confusing so we have decided to help by issuing tips on how to comfortably manage your energy procurement and cut the costs of your energy costs.
Avoid the “automatic renewal trap”
Failure to renew your existing gas and electricity gas and electricity contract or switch to a new energy supplier can find your business locked into uncompetitive rates. Be proactive and contact your existing utility supplier and find out your renewal dates and when you need to notify your supplier about the cancellation.
Understand and check what is available in the wholesale energy market
Research the options and understand the difference between a fixed-term contract, a flexible energy contract or a group energy buying energy contract.
Taking control of your and having a proactive approach to buying energy and with contractual terms becoming more complex, time and understanding need to be achieved to purchase the best contract for your business.
Changes in your energy consumption can affect your next energy contract
You may have had an energy audit and your half-hourly electricity usage and consumption may have changed, if so you may need to renegotiate your minimum tolerance levels on renewal of your proceeding contract for example.
Keep a watchful eye on the wholesale energy market
The wholesale gas and electricity market is very volatile and unpredictable. World and political issues can affect energy prices. Waiting to purchase gas and electricity when your contract is in the “out of contract” period may be ok for smaller organisations. Larger organisations need to “buy at the right time “.
If you want to know more about the wholesale energy market and how possible changes and understanding, of effective energy management, can affect your business then please get in touch.
Log in with Google