The introduction of flexible products, that have traditionally only been available to energy buyers with the very largest consumption, to smaller companies has been one of the biggest changes of the past couple of years. This report investigates the extent of this movement by asking a selection of suppliers and TPIs what they would offer to different buyers.

• the consumption of buyers currently able to use flexible tariffs
• data on the existing penetration of flexibility among different buyer types
• insight into the mechanisms by which flexibility allows the managing and bearing of risk


Highlights



Options for the largest gas buyers and smaller power buyers are consistent whereas other buyers face a wider range of options. Flexible gas purchasing is mature among the largest buyers and many smaller power buyers are accessing flexibility through standardized products with prescribed flexibility.





Buyers in both gas and power that currently use flexible or indexed products have a much higher consumption than those on fixed price deals as the largest buyers have the resources to dedicate to more involved energy management options.





Flexible contracting represents for suppliers and buyers the trade off between managing and bearing the risks of energy contracting, with larger buyers achieving this by taking forward positions in the market.



Reasons to Purchase


• understand the current penetration of flexible products into the market
• identify the gas and power buyers likely to be using flexible elements
• decide on future non-fixed rate tariff offerings to buyers