FEATURE ENERGY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE Flexing your energy buying rights


Stuart Taylor, manager of corporate accounts at Gazprom Energydiscusses the skills and resources needed to make flexible energy buying a success


be a challenge to stay within budget and ensure you’re getting value for money. But with the ability to monitor and model cost scenarios against a benchmark, essentially seeing how you would fare buying X amount of energy at its current price, it is possible to budget effectively. Validating energy bills means having


access to detailed and reliable information. Energy managers are often faced with having to carry out internal recharging when applying charges to individual departments and providing the supporting evidence. And when receiving energy bills, energy managers should examine them closely to ensure that they are fully accurate.


W


hen it comes to making key business decisions such as what


type of supplier contract to go for, the safer option is usually more attractive. This includes energy procurement, in which smaller businesses tend to opt for fixed price contracts to secure budget certainty and minimise risk. But as growth takes its course, businesses become increasingly open to different energy buying options available. A flexible buying approach, which can


allow businesses to take advantage of lower prices and ‘buy ahead’ for future requirements when energy prices drop, is often a consideration for growing businesses and those that consider energy a strategic cost. But to truly make flexible energy buying a valuable asset for the business, certain skills and resources are required. Businesses need to be aware of the


complexities that this approach brings when procuring energy. The energy market is fast-paced and ever-changing and energy buyers have no choice but to understand every scenario so that they’re able to take advantage and know how to purchase energy accordingly.


IN THE EVENT OF… Fluctuating energy prices can be difficult for energy buyers to make sense of. But by understanding events that cause price changes, buyers can make an informed judgement on how they should react.


18 WINTER 2017 | ENERGY MANAGEMENT


Events that directly impact the availability of energy, such as the recent closure of energy storage facility Rough, are more easily identified as factors that may have an effect on its price. Political decisions, military conflicts, humanitarian and natural catastrophes can also have an effect on energy trade deals. Successfully managing a flexible


approach to energy buying means understanding the cause and effect of what can dramatically alter energy resources. Staying up to date with the latest headlines really can pay dividends.


SIFTING THROUGH THE DATA Manually keeping track of the trends and patterns of energy prices is a challenge. Energy managers have long had to deal with unwieldy spreadsheets that constantly need updating to keep up with changes in the market. As a daily responsibility, dealing with ICE price reports consumes valuable time for the energy buyer who carries a heavy admin burden and has less time to carry out strategic activity. When energy buyers are at the


mercy of energy price fluctuations, it can


Figure 1: Fluctuating energy prices can be difficult for energy buyers to make sense of. But by understanding events that cause price changes, buyers can make an informed judgement on how they should react


THIRD PARTY INSIGHTS It can be difficult knowing how your energy contract compares to other deals on offer. That’s the reason for many businesses getting third parties involved to broker their deals and benchmark it against the market. Gaining further energy insight like this can reassure energy managers that the energy buying decisions they make are based on expert advice and awareness of the market. Buying energy flexibly requires ongoing


“Successfully


managing a flexible approach to energy buying means


understanding the cause and effect of what can


dramatically alter energy resources ..."


support from personnel, but technology can make certain tasks simpler for the business. Gazprom Energy has recently launched InSight, a tool allowing customers to easily access live energy prices, monitor trends and do scenario planning. The energy market can change by the hour and InSight updates in real time, giving price alerts and triggers to let businesses know when the market may benefit them. As the business grows and sees the value in adopting a flexible approach to energy procurement, that’s when it should step up its energy management skills and ensure access to vital knowledge is available. With the right resources in place, businesses can increase their chances of having a cost-effective and efficient energy management


approach.


Gazprom Energy www.gazprom-energy.com e: epd@gazprom-energy.com


/ ENERGYMANAGEMENT


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36