Cricket club saves thousands with new energy contract

Energy procurement business Apertus Group has reinforced and strengthened its relationship with Northamptonshire County Cricket Club (NCCC), procuring an energy contract that has saved the club tens of thousands of pounds.

Apertus Group has had a long relationship with NCCC, providing energy consultancy services, procuring club vehicles for overseas players, and sponsoring the scoreboard. This latest development in the relationship has seen Apertus Group organise and procure new electricity and gas contracts for the County Ground.

New Contracts for NCCC

These new contracts have saved the club a large amount of money, primarily via eliminating standing charges. A standing charge is an amount charged by an energy provider per day regardless of the amount of energy used. However, one of the club’s largest energy consuming facilities, the floodlights, are used very infrequently, only 25 days out of the year, but their presence raises the standing charges significantly due to the potential energy usage that running them more frequently would entail. By eliminating the standing charges and negotiating a per-unit contract, Apertus Group has created a saving of approximately 24%.

Managing Energy Costs

Jon Newsham, Head of Energy Services at Apertus Group, said: “The cricket club doesn’t use energy like your average business; their usage spikes during games but is usually a lot lower, so it was important to organise a contract that suited them. We’re very happy with the deal we’ve achieved, and we hope we can help more sports clubs in the future with their unique energy needs.”

Ray Payne, Chief Executive Officer at NCCC, said: “For many years, energy was seen as a fixed cost, inflationary linked, maybe not seen as a priority because heat and power were just there and you paid for it as it went.

“That all changed with the energy crisis, we had to rethink some of those business decisions we were making and energy became probably the third highest cost we had, so working with a consultancy like Apertus was about how to best manage that cost.

“Cost savings are available, such as LED lighting, but really it’s about how you are buying your energy and at what levels.”

Grant McKenna, Managing Director at Apertus Group added: “We’re very happy to have reinforced our relationship with NCCC and saved them money in the process. The club is an excellent sporting asset to Northamptonshire, and we’ll be supporting them across all competitions in the ongoing season.”

If you have a business with unique energy needs, contact us to find out how Apertus Group can help you.

For information on events held at the Northamptonshire County Cricket Ground, including the latest fixtures, visit the Northamptonshire County Cricket Club website.