Blog - News & Industry Insights | ERM Power

The Top 3 Reasons Businesses Leave their Energy Retailer

Top 3 Reasons Businesses Leave their Energy Retailer

A recent report commissioned by ERM Power has revealed the top three reasons businesses leave their energy retailer.
A survey of over 160 commercial and industrial organisations by PwC has identified the attributes businesses value the most in their energy retailer, and the reasons they switch providers. It found that while price is important, there are other factors that influence customer choice.
1. Better Product Offering
Increasing uncertainty in the energy market means customers are looking for flexible products that give them…

December 19, 2019 Blog

5 Tips When Recontracting Your Business Energy

5 Tips When Recontracting Your Business Energy

When it’s time to recontract your business energy, it’s all about being prepared and doing your homework.
1. Get your site information in shape
It’s important that everyone involved in the recontracting process has a clear picture of the business needs. Work with your procurement department or energy advisor to identify the following information for each of your sites:

Site addresses
NMIs (National Metering Identifier, a unique reference for each connection point)
Current contract end date
Current charges and costs
Annual consumption
Any forecast changes to your…

December 18, 2019 Blog

What is Demand Response?

ERM Power runs a Demand Response program that rewards your organisation for reducing the amount of electricity it takes from the grid during very high usage periods. Your organisation will be on call, and paid to turn off machinery or appliances, or switch to on-site generators for a period of time during these ‘events’.
We’ll tell you when we’d like your organisation to participate, either by SMS or email, and you can decide whether it’s suitable to participate. Alternatively, we…

November 25, 2019 Blog, Insights Demand Response, Energy Demand

PwC Survey of large organisations

PwC asks: Beyond price, what are Australian businesses looking for from their energy retailer?

In the first initiative of its kind, ERM Power commissioned PwC to survey over 160 commercial and industrial organisations to identify the attributes they value the most in their energy retailer. They found that while price is important, there are other factors that matter significantly and that shape customer choice when it comes to contracting business energy.
Here’s what else the research revealed:

Almost 20% of customers experienced moderate or significant issues with their current electricity retailer
93% of these customers spend…

November 21, 2019 Blog

What’s your business energy going to cost you these holidays?

What’s your business energy going to cost you these holidays?

Your buildings could be costing you money this holiday season, according to data and analysis of commercial energy use from ERM Power.
Megan Houghton, ERM Power’s Executive General Manager Energy Solutions, says their analysis may surprise many executives, but close to one in 10 commercial premises in Australia are running energy intensive building systems despite being unoccupied on public holidays.
“Applying these findings to the National Electricity Market, we estimate Australian businesses potentially waste about two million kilowatt hours of power…

November 21, 2019 Blog

tesy Australia condamine

Teys Australia Case Study

Teys is an innovative Australian food business with a strong national supply network and global reach, and more than 70 years’ experience in the beef industry value chain.
One of Teys Australia’s key feedlots in Condamine, on the Western Darling Downs of Queensland, houses 30,000 cattle. The property’s feedlot includes a high-power feed distribution system which was employing a large amount of electricity each day to efficiently mill grain to feed the cattle.
As part of Teys Australia’s commitment to industry…

November 14, 2019 Blog, Insights Case Studies, Energy Assessments, Industry - Manufacturing, Solar

Quarterly Wholesale Market Update: July – September 2019

ERM Power is excited to share our new Quarterly Wholesale Market Update for July – September 2019.
Our Market Update provides a quarterly summary of wholesale market activity to help you keep up to date with what is happening in the industry.
July – September 2019 Wholesale Market Update
This quarter, Executive General Manager Trading, David Guiver gives an update on the renewable energy target, talks about AEMO’s Electricity Statement of Opportunities and discusses how tight the Victorian market is starting to…

October 14, 2019 Blog Wholesale Market Updates

Gippsland Water Case Study

Gippsland Water Case Study

Gippsland Water was looking to improve control over its energy expenditure in light of predicted rising future costs and an obligation to meet an emissions reduction commitment to the Victorian State Government. The water sector is responsible for 24% of the Government’s annual emissions, making it the largest single sector contributor to its emissions.
On 14th March 2018, the Hon. Lisa Neville, State Minister for Water, issued a “Statement of Obligations (Emission Reduction)” to several Victorian water authorities, requiring them…

October 8, 2019 Blog, Insights Case Studies, Energy Assessments, Industry - Manufacturing, Solar

Residential Investment

ERM Power invests in residential energy retailers

Many of our customers may not be aware that ERM Power has investments in two residential energy retailers. Leveraging our strengths and experience in the business sector, these companies stand to benefit from our many years of energy expertise.
Why residential?
Having canvassed a range of options aimed at diversifying our investments and strengthening our market share and capabilities, a few years ago ERM Power invested in two businesses that serve residential customers: Energy Locals and 1st Energy.
EGM Energy Retail Steve…

September 24, 2019 Blog Residential

Network Tariff Optimisation

Network Tariff Optimisation

ERM Power’s Network Tariff Optimisation (NTO) program has been designed specifically to save our customers money, with the next round of reviews having just happened.
The last NTO review in March 2019 identified $3.5 million[1] in potential annual savings for our large customers that could be realised simply by switching to a different network tariff. Of that figure, customers who implemented our recommended tariff change expect to realise approximately $2.1 million in annual savings (in aggregate). This leaves $1.4 million…

September 24, 2019 Blog Energy Supply, Network Tariff

Five-minute settlement rule changes

Five-Minute Settlement rule takes effect in the National Electricity Market from 1 July 2021

Since this article has been published there has been an update to the timing around the launch of the Five-Minute Settlement rule. Click here to read the update.
A substantial change is set to take place to the cost structures of generator dispatch and retailer consumption, with the launch of the Five-Minute Settlement rule in 2021.
The Five-Minute Settlement rule seeks to resolve pricing anomalies that have existed since the start of the National Electricity Market (NEM). Currently generators bid and…

September 24, 2019 Blog, News Energy Supply

Basslink cables

Outage for Basslink Cable

Note: Since publishing this article, the Basslink cable returned to service on 29 September 2019. To read more, click here.
Investigators say the latest failure in the 500-megawatt Basslink cable will render it out of action until at least mid-October.
Connecting Tasmania and Victoria, Basslink is the world’s longest submarine power cable and the outage means Tasmania is currently unable to transfer energy to and from the mainland. The cable has experienced outages in the past but unlike the 2016 undersea…

September 24, 2019 Blog, News Energy Supply

LIsarow High School

Lisarow High School – NSW Schools Energy Productivity Program

The NSW Schools Energy Productivity Program (SEPP) is an initiative developed by the NSW public school sector.
The program was designed to:

demonstrate the benefits of energy productivity improvements and renewables
accelerate the adoption of renewable energy for NSW public schools
provide an engagement and implementation strategy for the NSW public schools sector to implement renewable energy and energy productivity over a 5-to-10-year period.

ERM Power was engaged by Schools Infrastructure NSW (SINSW) in the $1M pilot program which was co-funded by the ARENA…

September 9, 2019 Blog, Insights Case Studies, Energy Assessments, Industry - Education

The GPT Group Energy Masterplan – A pathway to net zero carbon emissions

In 2018, The GPT Group engaged ERM Power to help them develop a strategy for achieving net zero carbon emissions for the GPT Wholesale Office Fund by 2020.
“GPT aims to be a zero-carbon company by 2030 but our wholesale office fund will have its building’s being zero carbon by 2020,” says Steve Ford, Head of Sustainability at GPT. “It is a very bold target, but it is one that we know we can do.”
Nick Jones, Head of Strategic Clients…

September 6, 2019 Blog Case Studies, Energy Demand, Renewables, Solar

ERM Power’s commitment to diversity recognised

ERM Power is proud to have been named a finalist in the Employer of Choice Corporate Award category at this year’s annual Women in Technology Awards.
The awards will be presented at a Gala dinner on 30 August in Brisbane.
Women in Technology is one of Queensland’s most respected and active technology industry associations. The wide range of awards recognise women at varying stages of their career, and companies who are making exceptional advances in diversity and supporting women.
ERM Power Executive…

August 16, 2019 Blog ERM Careers, Working at ERM