Office energy broker: you pay peak rates for a building that is dark by six
Accountants, agencies, law firms, brokers: an office load is air conditioning, lighting and a comms cabinet, running Monday to Friday and close to nothing on the weekend. It is the cleanest profile on this list, which means it should be priced sharply, and on a flat rate it almost never is.
What a office or professional services bill actually looks like.
Before anyone can tell you whether you are overpaying, they have to know how your site actually uses power. These are the numbers we start from on a office or professional services, and the ones we check yours against first.
The tariff that usually wins: Time-of-use almost always wins, the load is business hours with a near-empty weekend
Where the bill goes wrong for offices and professional services firms.
air conditioning cooling a whole floor when half the desks are empty
server and comms cabinet cooling ticking over all weekend
a flat rate charging peak prices for a building that is dark from 6pm Friday
tenancy meters and base-building charges nobody has ever separated out
What a switch looks like on a office or professional services.
An illustration, not a promise. Your number depends entirely on what you are paying now, which is the whole reason we read the bill first.
Assumptions: Brisbane suburban office tenancy, ~60 MWh/yr, moved from a rolled-over contract to a time-of-use rate priced off business hours
What we look for in a retailer for offices and professional services firms.
No retailer gets a default answer from us. On a office or professional services site, these are the things that decide which one actually wins on your numbers.
- A retailer that will actually price the tariff these sites need: Time-of-use almost always wins, the load is business hours with a near-empty weekend.
- Flexibility across the 20,000 kWh to 200,000 kWh a year range. Offices and professional services firms straddle the SME and C&I line, so we price it both ways and take whichever wins.
- A soft demand rate, not just a sharp c/kWh. At 12–90 kVA the demand charge can move the annual bill more than the energy rate does.
- No gas to bundle on most of these sites, so the electricity rate and the demand charge have to win on their own merit.
- How their pricing copes with air conditioning cooling a whole floor when half the desks are empty.
- How their pricing copes with server and comms cabinet cooling ticking over all weekend.
- How their pricing copes with a flat rate charging peak prices for a building that is dark from 6pm Friday.
- How their pricing copes with tenancy meters and base-building charges nobody has ever separated out.
- Contract length, and what happens at the end of it: the exit fee, the notice window and the evergreen rollover rate you land on if nobody moves.
- If you run more than one site, whether they'll price the whole portfolio or only want the big meters.
We're paid by the energy retailer when you switch, never by you, and the commission is printed in c/kWh next to every offer. How we choose a retailer.
Looking for a office or professional services energy broker in your suburb?
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Office or professional services energy, common questions
I've got multiple meters / multiple sites, can you handle it?
Yes. We aggregate meter data across all your sites, then tender as a single block. That gets you a better rate than splitting them across multiple SME contracts.
Am I on the right small-business tariff?
Probably not. Retailers don't migrate you automatically when better tariffs become available. We look at your usage profile, your peak demand, and your trading hours, then map you to the tariff your bill actually wants.
Should I be on time-of-use or flat-rate?
Depends on your usage pattern. Cafes open 6am–2pm usually win on flat-rate. Gyms with split 5–9am and 4–8pm windows usually win on TOU. We test both with your real meter data, not a generic assumption.
Will my power get cut off when I switch?
No. Switching retailers doesn't touch the wires or your meter. Same poles, same wires, same network operator (Energex for nearly all SEQ). You just get a different name on your invoice, and a better number.
How long does a switch take?
Typical SEQ small-business switch: 10–20 business days from signing the Letter of Authority. We send the LoA, you sign, we lodge with the new retailer, they handle the meter-data hand-off with the network. Your old contract ends, the new one starts.
What's a demand charge and why is mine so high?
Demand charges are the highest 15- or 30-minute usage peak in the month, multiplied by a $/kVA rate. If you've got AC cycling on at the same time as kitchen equipment, that peak compounds. The fix is usually a tariff that prices demand more fairly, or moving you off demand-tariffs altogether if your usage is too small to need them.
Am I on the right small-business tariff?
Probably not. Retailers don't migrate you automatically when better tariffs become available. We look at your usage profile, your peak demand, and your trading hours, then map you to the tariff your bill actually wants.
We're paid by the energy retailer when you switch, never by you.
When we move your account to a new retailer, that retailer pays us a commission, partly upfront, partly as a trail while you're with them. Your rate is your rate. There's no markup, no broker fee on your invoice, no monthly subscription.
We disclose the commission existence on every quote. If you want to know the exact dollar amount on a deal, ask. We'll tell you.
This is why we win on transparency: we'd rather show you the maths than dress up the savings.
Office or professional services owner? Send the bill, we'll quote it
Drop your most recent electricity or gas bill. I'll come back with what your retailer panel can do, in plain English, usually same day.
- Send us one recent bill, or let us get it from your retailer.
- Sign a one page authority so we can ask retailers for prices.
- See every offer that comes back, with our commission on each one.
Takes about ninety seconds. Haven't got the bill handy? We will get it from your current retailer for you.
Ready to see what your panel can do?
Send us your bill, we'll come back with real numbers, not a sales call.