Choice Energy
Choice Energy
CHRISTOPHER DEAN, CEO of Choice Energy, discusses the benefits of solar power and energy management.
Choice Energy was founded in 2013. In 2017 The Australian Financial Review recognised us as the 12th fastest growing company in Australia and we provide Energy Services to around 6,000 customers.
Growth has been primarily due to our holistic energy management structure made up of 7 distinct services; something that was missing in the marketplace prior to 2013. In addition there has been an energy crisis over the last 24 months where the price of wholesale power increased by more than 250%, so energy is now a considerable item on any financial director’s opex budget, which has made our services all the more relevant.
Everything we do at Choice Energy is focused on optimising the costs for our customers and essentially helping them to use less power and pay less for the power that they do use. We won’t offer or provide any services that don’t put the customer in a better position.
While there are 7 core services that we offer, our unique business model is split into two hugely complimentary areas.
The first is solar and power factor correction which help customers to reduce the amount of power they consume and demand from the grid.
An associate membership with CMPA has enabled Choice Energy to better serve Victoria’s Victorian Earth Resources industry. Our solutions are cash flow positive or neutral from day one and can require no upfront capital investment.
For example with solar, there are many ways which the customer can purchase but our preferred method is a rent-to-own model which is financed and cheaper to pay than the power from the grid. This means our customers don’t need to find extra budget. By renting, their system is not on the balance sheet and therefore is not a liability, but when it is paid off with a two-month balloon repayment at the end of the rental, the customer owns it and it becomes an asset.
We provide system performance guarantees where we are financially penalised if any of the systems go offline. Indeed, we have to pay the customer’s increase in power bill until system performance resumes.
Our customers receive a monthly solar performance report, which includes a PV (sunlight) comparison to the local Bureau of Meteorology, so they can see their exact return on investment and compare that to the business model Choice Energy put forward when selling the solution.
Lastly, we are incentivised to do more than stay in touch. Our procurement services are a continuous ‘win-win’ exercise where we can make money by saving our customers money.
That kind of leads to the second area of the business, which is Energy Procurement Services for both electricity and gas. We work with 13 retailers in a competitive blind tender process to get the very sharpest rates for our customers. Participating retailers know they’ll need to sharpen their prices when the tender is instigated by Choice Energy.
With the retail part of the bill optimised, we turn to the network demand and tariff costs. Here we’ll look to have a customer’s demand lowered or find them a less costly tariff which better suits the way they use electricity.
Finally, we monitor the customer’s meter data and use it to validate their bills. If they are incorrect in the customer’s favour we suggest how much they might accrue in case the retailer realises the error, but if they are incorrect where the customer has paid too much, we arm the customer with everything they need to contact the retailer and request a credit.
Ultimately, our customers use less grid power and ensure their power bills are as small and accurate as possible. They gain control of that supposedly uncontrollable opex item, electricity costs.
Case Study
Choice Energy is currently working with City Circle Group to install a 35kW roof top solar system at their Dandenong South facility. This system attracted a government grant of $19,000 and the savings from this installation is forecast to be between ~ $8,500 per year on their power costs. Given the savings are attributed to the reduction in City Circle’s reliance on grid power, the annual savings will increase as wholesale electricity prices continue to rise and are predicted to be in the vicinity of $500,000 over the life of the system.
60 Seconds with an associate member . . .
What is your name?
Christopher Dean
Who do you work for?
Choice Energy
How many years have you been involved in the Industry?
Eight
What is your role at the company?
CEO
What is on the radar for 2018?
Helping businesses use less energy and pay less for their energy
What do you love about your work?
We love simplifying what can be a complex market full of jargon and dinosaurs. Every conversation is different as every business we help is different. They all appreciate clarity regarding energy costs though!
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