Businesses often overpay for energy because they don’t have accurate data around their energy consumption. Many very large organisations, such as hotels, data centres, and supermarkets, still rely on physical meter readings every month or every quarter, and in many cases, their invoices are based on quarterly estimates. This allows inefficiencies to remain buried, and leads to lengthy issues and unresolvable billing disputes. Perhaps the worst part is it leaves the company with no recourse against unexpected price increases.
Half hourly meters UK completely fix this issue by providing real-time energy consumption data every 30 minutes. The ability to interpret this data helps businesses to identify wasteful energy usage, manage peak demand, and better negotiate tariffs. In this blog, we look at how HH meters can help reduce costs, and how E for Energy helps unlock savings for businesses.
A half-hourly meter record electricity meters every half-hour, and sends or transmits automatically to the suppliers and national grid systems. With a standard commercial electricity meters UK, energy consumption is recorded and billed based on periodic human readings. HH meters provide:
• Real-time, accurate consumption data for each half-hour of the d ay.
• Automatic data transfers lessening the risk of human error.
• User’s detailed usage profile demonstrating exactly when energy was used, and wasted.
Half-hourly meters are mandatory for where maximum demands exceed 100 kW, but there are many organisations that voluntarily get a half-hourly meter for lower loads, taking advantage of controls and costs associated.
For quite some time in the UK, energy-intensive users have been required to have mandatory HH meters or similar devices that measure usage in clearly defined periods. However, the current situation is changing:
• Market-wide half-hourly settlement (MHHS): Ofgem intends to transfer nearly all businesses and, from 2027, potentially even households onto HH settlement in the future. This means you are going to see tariffs become more based on when you use energy, not just how much energy you use, and so the requirement for HH meters is only going to increase in the future.
• Climate change levy (CCL) and VAT: Particularly as there are CCL rates in addition to VAT on top of unit costs, you will want to be measuring consumption accurately and ensuring you have evidence of eligibility for CCL exemptions or reduced rates.
Why should you consider taking action now? half hourly meters UK are being adopted by businesses so that they can learn and benefit from managing peak usage and gaining the best tariff structures well before the ratification of more complex and time-sensitive tariff tariffs.
For major energy users, half-hourly (HH) meters are not just regulatory requirements – they are powerful cost-cutting tools. With half-hourly (HH) consumption data, captured every 30 minutes, companies can easily identify inefficient baseload consumption, i.e. equipment that is running outside of operational hours or is otherwise running unnecessarily. Companies can also use this granular data to monitor and shift peak demand to cheaper time periods, to ensure energy load does not coincide with times of higher tariffs and makes business energy monitoring easier.
One more advantage is the ability to identify atypical consumption spikes, which could indicate broken equipment or inefficient operations. Resolving these problems as they emerge helps the company avoid incurring unnecessary costs and wasting energy. HH data can also help to demonstrate and support energy efficiency investment which requires the company to justify investment by demonstrating to returns, as there is now hard data to demonstrate energy use which makes it easier to calculate and substantiate ROI.
Such a level of insight is ideal for energy-intensive industries. Hotels and resorts operate 24/7 and have large HVAC and lighting demands, therefore, they get more control of their energy usage 24 hours per day (Level 4). Data centres, which have constant server cooling requirements, may use hourly usage data to adjust energy consumption in off-peak hours, as would manufacturers and shift workers who operate heavy machinery, and a large retailer, supermarkets, who have lighting and refrigeration demands. All will benefit by reducing unnecessary usage and developing energy strategies that are better informed with accurate hourly data.
1. Accurate Billing and Reducing Errors
The key advantage of business half hourly metering is that it ensures billing accuracy. Every kilowatt-hour (kWh) an organization consumes is accurately recorded and accurately relayed for billing; thereby, businesses only pay for the energy quantity that they consume versus possibly overpaying due to erroneous estimated readings; not to mention the subsequent disputes. If the HH data is available at invoice time, bill reconciliation is easy and errors are spotted and resolved reasonably quickly; all of which helps to reduce energy bills.
2. Peak Load Management
HH meters reveal which half-hour time periods represent the highest demand for energy. With this data organizations could see when they are using energy in the most energy-intensive way and also create meaningful strategies to mitigate peak consumption. For example, by staggering or rescheduling non-essential business processes losses in revenue from peak-period charges (and consumption) may be avoided. By smoothing energy it will reduce their operational costs and strain on the grid at high-demand times.
3. Access to Smarter Tariffs
By obtaining HH metering, another key benefit is access to more adaptable and time-of-use (ToU) tariffs. Suppliers can offer tariffs again at different cost points, based on the patterns in half-hourly measurements of consumption. Again, businesses that are able to reschedule operations into off-peak periods stand to benefit the most from the much lower tariffs that will now be available. By gaining the ability to analyse patterns of energy consumption, organisations can always secure cheaper tariffs by changing their energy consumption to suit the periods of the lowest electricity price.
4. Better Energy Procurement
With the access to good quality HH data, energy consultants and procurement teams can now procure new contract arrangements that match a businesses real usage profile. This avoided a one size fits all approach that often has hidden premiums added. Good quality detailed consumption gives businesses a strong negotiating platform that allows them to secure a contract that is least cost, and suited to the businesses operational requirements. Over the duration of a contract this could yield massive savings.
5. Support for Net Zero and Sustainability
Half hourly data is also an important factor for businesses trying to reach their net zero targets. It gives detailed insights into energy consumption which makes monitoring of carbon footprint much more accurate. It can also allow businesses to access demand-side response programmes, where businesses can get paid to decrease their energy consumption when the grid is under strain. This is not only a cost saving measure for the organisation but also demonstrates their contribution towards sustainability and energy efficiency.
6. Integration with Smart Technology
More modern buildings are relying on technology in a way that energy use is being managed more easily, and HH data can easily integrate with BMS. When automation is involved, HH data can take things a step further by implementing energy-saving measures in the real-time environment, such as changing HVAC schedules or changing lighting schedules. HH metering also supports integration of on-site renewable generation (like solar) and battery supplied energy storage services. Using both data and technology achieves much greater energy efficiency whilst reducing the amount of the expensive grid-based energy it will require.
Half-hourly meters models are much more than just a great start to an energy management methodology. When partnered with an expert analysis, half-hourly models pave the way for the real, holistic energy strategy with smart contracts to enable switching of suppliers for better terms; comprehensive energy audits to identify and implement low-cost efficiency improvements; renewable solutions, including on-site solar PV and batteries; and ultimately, half-hourly data will facilitate peak demand optimisations to help reduce unit rates and other non-unit charges, including capacity and network fees. Given the highly volatile energy prices, these combined strategies help ensure businesses remain competitive, resilient and in control of their energy costs.
Half-hourly meters are so much more than a compliance requirement; they give you the opportunity for smarter energy management and the chance for significant savings. For businesses with high energy consumption, the more detailed data provides:
• Transparency: see exactly how your energy is being used.
• Control: strategies to avoid paying peak charges.
• Savings: better heretic negotiations resulting in no overbuying.
E for Energy can help you realise the full potential of HH meters by using expert analysis, data insights and market knowledge to reduce your electricity bills.