Inenco said the majority of businesses affected by the changes to charging in meter profile classes 05-08 were unaware they would be required to appoint an accredited meter operator (MOP) and data collection (DC) agent.
Shopping around for DC and MOP contracts early could be a “vital cost saving exercise” that could achieve “annual savings in excess of £700 per for every metering point”, Inenco added.
A poll conducted for the consultancy last week revealed that some of the UK’s largest energy consumers are unaware of regulation P272 which comes into effect from April 2016, and did not realise the cost implications the change will have on their business.
Inenco’s chief commercial officer David Cockshott said: “Businesses need to get on top of the upcoming changes and more importantly leave themselves enough time to shop around for their DC and MOP contracts. The cost of these services varies greatly but the market is competitive.”
“By shopping around, annual savings in excess of £700 per for every metering point can be achieved. Across all sites affected that amounts to a potential saving of £116m a year.”
Business electricity supplier Haven Power’s chief executive Peter Bennell said the introduction of half-hourly charging would be the “biggest chance” for uptake of energy efficiency amongst business electricity users by causing a sharp price increase.