Beating the bills while protecting the planet

Pinergy’s Daire Keating explains how all businesses can now combine affordability and sustainability when assessing their energy needs

In recent years, endless challenges have hit Irish businesses hard. They have had to embrace new technologies, new ways of trading and fend off crisis after crisis—not to mention a once-in-a-century pandemic.

One of the most serious roadblocks has been the impact of rising energy prices.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, costs soared by an incredible 200 percent. As almost every business owner saw to their despair, these increases were immediately reflected in their energy bills.

Although prices have since fallen, they remain high—about 100 percent above prices in early 2020.

But while Irish businesses now pay less for power, they remain vulnerable to energy price volatility. This is especially true for those that cannot easily reduce their consumption.

Making energy pricing more predictable

From the largest multinational to the local start-up, bill shock continues to chip away at business confidence and constrain ambitions.

In response, Daire Keating FCA, Pinergy’s Group Chief Commercial Officer, points out how Pinergy is supporting businesses that want to stabilise costs and boost certainty about cash flow.

“Pinergy has developed a number of options that make budgeting more straightforward— and given that priorities and circumstances differ, our

Energy Consultants focus on recommending a tailored plan for our customers,” Keating says.

“To create this, we undertake a deep dive into each business’s specific needs and identify exactly how it uses energy. At the same time, we factor in other issues including sustainability policies and priorities, including pressure that may arise in their supply chain.”

As Keating explains, the insights gained from analysing a company’s energy data and consultative discussions drive the creation of a bespoke plan.

“One of our four different Pinergy options will be at the heart of our recommendation: Pass-Through; WinterLock; a Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (CPPA); or a Fixed Priced contract.”

Pass-Through

Pinergy’s Pass-Through plan gives customers access to energy at wholesale prices. This means they can avail of lower prices when markets fall and pay more as wholesale market pricing rises.

“Many of our customers choose this product to avail of lower pricing when markets are depressed, but there is always the potential for volatility,” Keating explains.

WinterLock

WinterLock is a new variable price option now offered by Pinergy.

“WinterLock aims to remove the volatility of the cost of energy at the time of year when it can be at its highest point,” Keating explains.

“We are really excited about working with businesses of all sizes on this type of energy product which allows for much more control on a key cost.

“It typically follows a fixed pricing model during the seasonally higher price points in the winter whilst availing of potential savings on our Pass-Through product in the summer months.”

While WinterLock aims to deliver a more stable pricing environment, together with the Pass-Through product, they are still classed as variable price options.

Pinergy also offers two fixed price plans for businesses that want complete certainty: Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (CPPA) and Fixed Pricing.

Corporate Power Purchase Agreement

“A CPPA offers far more than energy delivered at a fixed price. It also guarantees that this has been generated by a clearly named wind farm in Ireland,” Keating says.

“This means any business entering a CPPA can tell its customers, investors and staff that it is powered by a 100 percent renewable source of energy. We offer a unique CPPA offering in the Irish market, whereby our product is truly fixed.

“Other products in the market of this type look to pass the risk of the wind farm’s production to the customer. At Pinergy, we take all the risk whilst offering the most sustainable energy available, which is also local to Ireland.”

Fixed priced contract

The key benefit of Pinergy’s other non-variable price plan is evident in its name but, as Keating makes clear, Fixed Pricing also helps businesses meet their sustainability targets.

“With Fixed Pricing, our customers will always be sure of what they will pay for their power. At the same time, they can be certain that this energy has been generated exclusively from renewable sources,” he says.

“This promise stems from the clear commitment Pinergy has delivered since 2018—that we will only supply sustainably sourced energy.”

Combining certainty with sustainability

A commitment to sustainability is now included in Pinergy’s positioning statement, which states the company is focused on ‘Powering Energy Transition’.

Explaining why Pinergy has taken this position, Keating explains, “Energy transition” is the name given to the process of weaning the world off its dependence on fossil fuels.

“Clear international climate targets are now in place, including the European Green Deal, which aims to make the European Union climate neutral by 2050. Pinergy fully supports these goals and will do all it can to help achieve them.”

Beyond the obvious environmental benefits, Keating explains that switching to sustainably-sourced energy can also help bring business bills back under control.

“The price spikes of the early 2020s were sparked by the rising cost of imported gas. By encouraging the use of renewable sources of power— and Ireland is blessed by its access to resources such as near-constant wind—the country can reduce its dependence on imported fuels.”

“In turn, this lessens the possibility that businesses will suddenly face unmanageable rises in the cost of essential energy.”

Accurate data enables effective decision-making

Pinergy also offers businesses a way to visualise and analyse their entire energy consumption, across single or multiple sites.

“Seeing how energy is being used is a game changer,” Keating says.

“We estimate that many businesses waste around 15 percent of their energy annually. This isn’t done intentionally—it’s just that they don’t have the tools to hand to reduce this wastage.

“By showing customers their electricity and gas usage, Pinergy’s Acutrace platform empowers them to make positive changes.

“It can also measure water usage, waste, solar PV yields and even air quality—all on a single, usable dashboard. As such, it’s a must for any business with a property portfolio.”

More changes mean more savings

Many businesses are examining other ways to deliver their own energy transition, Keating says.

These range from adopting all-electric vehicle fleets to installing solar photovoltaic panels on rooftops that might otherwise just keep out the rain.

“Many businesses we meet are looking at changes that help both their bottom line and the planet,” explains Keating.

“Whether small or more substantial, every change makes a difference. In fact, Chief Financial Officers often see the business case for solar as a no-brainer since payback times can be within four or five years.”

Summarising how Pinergy helps Irish businesses combine sustainability with affordability, Daire Keating has a very positive outlook.

“The good news is that there are options out there this winter for businesses looking to take control of their energy,” he says.

“More and more businesses are changing their energy supplier and many have decided to make the transition to using 100 percent renewable energy from Pinergy—and this offers benefits far beyond the bottom line.

“Our team are well positioned to offer a bespoke and transparent approach to supplying our customers’ energy needs which we believe is in the interests of the Irish business community.”

For more information, visit www.pinergy.ie