Are your business energy bills too high? If so, is this because you're not on the cheapest energy deal or because you're using too much gas and electricity? If you're unsure, it might help to check your business energy usage against the average consumption figures for a similar-sized business.
If you want to cut your business energy bills, it helps to know exactly how much energy you're using each month. To do so, simply check your latest business energy bill, which will outline how much gas and electricity (measured in kWh) you’ve used in that billing period.
To get an idea of whether or not your business is using more energy than it should be, you can use this information to compare your usage figures with the average amounts used by similar-sized businesses.
But first, you'll need to know whether your business is a micro business or a SME.
The EU definition of SME is a business that has fewer than 250 employees and a turnover of less than €50 million, or a balance sheet total of less than €43 million.
The EU definition of a microbusiness is an enterprise that employs fewer than 10 people and an annual turnover of no more than €2 million.
Although all businesses are different, working out the average energy consumption of a range of businesses is an important part of business energy comparison. Below are the average gas and electricity usage figures for businesses of all sizes.
According to industry figures, the average microbusiness uses between 5,000 kWh and 15,000 kWh of gas each year, and 5,000 kWh and 15,000 kWh of electricity a year.
According to industry figures, the average small business uses between 15,000 kWh and 30,000 kWh of gas each year, and 15,000 kWh and 25,000 kWh of electricity a year.
According to industry figures, the average medium-sized uses between 30,000 kWh and 65,000 kWh of gas each year, and 25,000 kWh and 50,000 kWh of electricity a year.
According to industry figures, the average large uses more than 65,000 kWh of gas each year, and more than 50,000 kWh of electricity a year.
Although the type of industry you work in and the way your business uses gas and electricity will affect the amount of energy it uses, comparing your usage figures with the above should give you an idea of whether or not you're using too much energy.
If your business is using too much energy, it's time to put some energy efficiency measures in place, such as:
Running an energy audit is an effective way to work out ways in which you could be more energy efficient. For more information, check out our guide to business energy efficiency.
If your business energy usage figures tally up with the average usage figures but your bills are still too high, you need to check how much you're being charged for gas and electricity.
You can do this by looking out for the following costs on your bill:
You can then check these figures against the cost of an average business energy bill, as below:
According to industry figures, the average microbusiness can expect to pay about 5.1p per unit of gas and between 14.4p and 15.9p per unit of electricity used.
According to industry figures, the average small business can expect to pay between 4.5p and 5p per unit of gas and between 14.3p and 15.1p per unit of electricity used.
According to industry figures, the average small business can expect to pay between 4.3p and 4.5p per unit of gas and between 14.3p and 14.7p per unit of electricity used.
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The Energy Shop is a free, independent and impartial energy comparison service. We can help you compare and switch energy suppliers to save money. Our service is accredited by the Ofgem Confidence Code.
