Read our latest article by Caroline Beshay, our Key Account Manager, as she outlines how partnering with experts can save thousands.
How one of our key clients secured $400,000+ saving in energy costs
The client story below highlights the benefits of reframing a large organisation’s view of energy, thinking of it less as a compilation of utility bills and instead, an energy portfolio just waiting to be consolidated with cost-saving strategies applied.
Background
Our client was the Procurement Manager of a disability services provider (DSP) with over 700 sites covering various services including independent accommodation, group homes, allied health, and employment. Having worked with SES in a previous role for over 5 years, the newly appointed Procurement Manager understood there was an opportunity to reduce the company’s energy cost and decrease their accounts staff’s time-consuming task of paying a multitude of disparate energy invoices.
Opportunity
Our team needed to analyse the current billing situation across their entire business to help identify where consolidation could be applied. Analysis of their initial billing status showed:
- Individual sites had their own account names.
- Billing was paid at the site level and company level.
- Multiple energy retailers were engaged across the portfolio.
- Site bundling occurred in some bills and independent sites on others.
- Some sites were not on contract.
- Calculating the total number of sites and total energy spend was very complex and required timely analysis of multiple invoices.
The Solution
Our Key Account Manager worked closely with the Procurement Manager to obtain comprehensive billing details and history on over 700 sites across electricity and gas. The result of months of work was:
✔️ Consolidation of the complex site list into a single energy portfolio.
✔️ Energy procurement – SES took the single portfolio to market to find competitive tenders from leading retailers.
✔️ Negotiation of contract offers with potential retailers took place to ensure cost savings – especially critical as the DSP is a not-for-profit organisation. Our team worked with our client and the DSP’s stakeholders to decipher the best electricity and gas offers, oversee the contract negotiations and sign-off within the contract validity period.
✔️ Single bill for energy and gas portfolios. After signing with a single retailer, a single bill for each commodity was achieved covering approximately 400 electricity sites and 300 gas sites.
✔️ Roll in/out allowance. This means the business can move into and out of sites at the same discount level and under the same contract and billing conditions.
✔️ Dedicated account manager. The client now has a central point of contact for all their energy needs through their SES Key Account Manager, ensuring that any bill disputes and roll in/out needs are addressed in a timely manner and most importantly, that they are kept up to date with the status of their portfolio and relevant opportunities without any risk of sites falling out of contract.
✔️ Engaged stakeholders. Thanks to our client, key stakeholders are now engaged in the process and have clearer visibility of their electricity and gas spend by site and across the portfolio.
SAVINGS
Our client secured over $400K in savings over a 36-month contract. The consolidation of hundreds of bills to just two will also slash their accounts team’s processing time and assist in forecasting future energy expenditure – making end of month billing and budgeting time so much easier.
Let’s talk energy efficiency today
Discuss your energy needs today with our team by filling out our contact form or calling us on (02) 9371 4153.
