February 17th 2020
REDUCE YOUR ENERGY BILLS WITH OUR FREE kVA AUDIT
Reducing your Available Energy Supply Capacity
Did you know that as a business, your energy distribution costs make up between 25-30% of overall electricity costs?
They are often passed through costs invoiced by the Electricity Supplier and depend on the location and size of the site as well as the Available Supply Capacity.
When you move into a site, you may be paying for more energy capacity than you need as this is what was agreed with the previous tenant.
Increasing your Available Supply Capacity
It may be that you need to increase your kVA.
What is kVA?
kVA is a measure of apparent power: It tells you the total amount of power in use in a system. In a 100% efficient system kW = kVA. However electrical systems are never 100% efficient and therefore not all of the systems apparent power is being used for useful work output. (Powerelectrics.com)
If you significantly increase the amount of power you draw from the grid, you should always make sure your KVA allowance has been arranged in advance with your network operator, or you more than likely will be charged excess capacity charges by your distribution network operators.
Companies often make the mistake of purchasing new machinery or equipment without ensuring they have enough available energy capacity to cover it.
For example, this can happen with new air conditioning systems or factory machinery! If your business relies on high energy output to operate, then it's worth checking your kVA output and whether you need to update your energy settings.
Free kVA audit
Lily can carry out a kVA audit on your behalf in order to see if you have gone over your agreed energy capacity over the last 12 months.
Our kVA energy audit includes:
- Check your kVA allowance is at a suitable level to avoid penalties/further penalties.
- Get assistance with the application process to the distribution network to increase your kVA
Hurry! These penalties are non-negotiable and will be passed through on your electricity invoices.
Excess Capacity Charges
As of 1st April 2018, DCP 161 is now in force, a new measure introduced by Ofgem. This means customers can pay up to four times the amount of their energy bill for exceeding their agreed kVA, depending on the distribution network.