In short
Food stores use electricity at a steady rate day and night because chillers and freezers never switch off. That makes night rates, capacity charges, meter setup and buying every store together worth more than the headline unit rate. New and acquired stores are the most likely to be on expensive rates.
- A 24-hour refrigeration load should be priced on its real pattern, not a typical shop profile.
- Capacity set when a store had different equipment can cost money every month.
- Market-wide half-hourly settlement is moving every meter onto half-hourly data, which changes how some contracts are priced.
The problem
Chillers and freezers run every hour of the year, in every store. A convenience store or small supermarket therefore uses electricity at a near-constant rate, day and night, and that shapes which costs matter most.
Priced on the wrong pattern
Many store contracts are quoted as if the store used power like a typical shop: busy in the day, quiet at night. A store whose load barely drops overnight can end up on terms that do not reward that pattern. The headline unit rate looks fine while the total cost does not.
Capacity from a previous fit-out
A store's agreed capacity is often set when it was first fitted out. New refrigeration, ovens or a coffee counter change what it draws. Too low means excess charges; too high means paying for unused headroom every month, and on larger supplies it can also set the band for fixed network charges.
New and acquired stores
When a group opens or acquires a store, the supply is often on deemed or out-of-contract rates until someone arranges a contract. In a growing chain there is nearly always one store in that position.
Half-hourly settlement
Market-wide half-hourly settlement is moving every electricity meter onto half-hourly data through 2026 and 2027. For stores with steady 24-hour loads that can change how suppliers price their contracts, so it is worth knowing which of your meters have moved.
The solution
1. Register every store
List every meter with its supplier, rates, capacity, meter type and end date.
2. Price on your real load
Use half-hourly data where you have it, so quotes reflect a 24-hour refrigeration load.
3. Check capacity store by store
Compare agreed capacity with real peak demand and adjust where it is far out.
4. Bring the estate together
Move stores to a common end date as contracts expire and tender the chain as one portfolio.
5. Add waste and water
Food waste, cardboard and general waste, and the separation rules in each nation, alongside water where you can choose a retailer.
Where we help
Where Business Savings Guru helps
Every store on one register
Rates, capacity and end dates for every store, with out-of-contract meters flagged.
Quotes on your real load
We price the estate on how your stores actually use power, day and night.
Capacity and meters checked
We check each store's capacity and meter setup against what it draws today.
Waste and water too
Food waste, cardboard and general waste collections, and water in England and Scotland, on the same register.
