Edinburgh company celebrates £20m in savings to UK businesses over 10 years of smart grid operations

An Edinburgh energy company started at a kitchen table is celebrating its birthday, by announcing it has surpassed the £20 million mark in benefits for its customers, over the past 10 years of live smart grid operations. 

Demand side response pioneer Flexitricity has generated £12 million in direct revenue for British businesses since going live in 2008, by helping them respond to shortfalls and excesses in the nation’s energy supply.

Flexitricity has also helped large energy consumers save £11 million in network charges, by helping them reduce load and increase on-site generation when national energy demand is at its highest.

Delivering nearly 70GWh of electricity in Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR) to National Grid over the last decade, the company says the results underline the importance of demand side response to the UK’s energy security.

The firm racked up £4.3m in turnover in the year ending March 2017, its best year of trading to date. Flexitricity’s managing director, Ron Ramage, said: “The past decade has been one of tremendous growth for Flexitricity, and our ambition is to use these results as a platform for further growth.

“There are exciting times ahead for the company and our partners, as we move into the supply and energy trading side of the market – an industry first - which will provide yet another string to our bow as we develop another lucrative revenue stream for our customers.”

Flexitricity’s customers include small generators and business electricity users, including commercial greenhouses, warehouses, NHS hospitals, universities, banks, datacentres, and manufacturers, and the growing pool of district heating schemes which provide low cost energy to help alleviate fuel poverty.  

It now employs 35 people at its Edinburgh headquarters, and is aiming for further growth after announcing it is set to move into the supply market later this year.

The company was founded in 2004 by Dr Alastair Martin, who pioneered open-market aggregated demand-side services for electricity system balancing. The company was then bought by Alpiq, a major Swiss utility company, in 2014.

Now chief strategy officer, Dr Martin said: “With the UK’s energy network becoming increasingly reliant on renewable sources of energy, the task of keeping the system balanced is becoming increasingly complex.

“While there are challenges ahead within the demand response industry, there is also an immense opportunity for organisations to continue to benefit as we work towards a new energy future, in which active, flexible customers save money by putting renewable energy to work.

“The industry is in a very different place than it was 10 years ago.  Decentralisation is already making energy fairer, cheaper and more secure, and we will continue to play a major part in driving this evolution in the market.”

Ends

In the UK, issued by Weber Shandwick on behalf of Flexitricity.

For more information please contact:

Steven Flanagan: 0141 333 0557/ 07557 210989/ sflanagan@webershandwick.com

Dyan Owen: 0141 333 0557/ 07775 404 601/ dowen@webershandwick.com

Notes to Editors:

About Flexitricity

Flexitricity created and now operates the first, largest and most advanced demand-response portfolio in GB and has unsurpassed knowledge of the market and its requirements.

Headquartered in Edinburgh, Flexitricity partners with businesses throughout Great Britain to provide reserve electricity to National Grid.  The word “Flexitricity” means “Flexible Electricity”. The company looks for flexibility in electricity consumption and generation, creating revenue for energy users and generators as well as reducing national CO₂emissions and helping to secure energy supplies.

Their team is fully engaged at industry and regulatory level and has a track record that demonstrates innovation and delivery success.

Flexitricity is part of the Alpiq Group, a leading Swiss electricity and energy service provider with a strong presence across Europe.