Resilient to recession with flexible energy procurement

In view of the latest ifo forecasts on declining economic performance in Germany, companies in energy-intensive sectors in particular are confronted with major challenges. Unpredictable changes, risks and rising material and energy costs threaten temporary production declines, plant relocations or closures. In order to be prepared for such situations, a flexible energy procurement strategy is recommended with which companies can secure their ability to act, minimise risks and get their costs under control at the same time. "Energy-intensive companies can use our wholesale procurement strategy to market surplus electricity and gas quantities that are not needed, for example, and thereby develop additional sources of income if necessary. At the same time, they are in a position to integrate renewable energies as needed in a way that promotes sustainability and image," says enexion Managing Director Theo Parpan.

As the current economic forecasts show, companies in Germany are facing hard times. One way to get the rising energy costs under control at least is offered by the energy management expert enexion. Theo Parpan: "It is essential to pursue a flexible procurement strategy for electricity and gas as early as possible and to implement it tactically in an optimal way. This consistently offers companies and businesses nothing but competitive advantages in terms of adaptability, risk management and cost optimisation."

Thus, a flexible energy procurement strategy considerably expands the entrepreneurial scope for action by providing adjustment options to changing production volumes or business orientations. "In times of recession, when demand is lower than expected, companies with rigid energy supply contracts would be forced to buy surplus energy they may not need. To prevent or minimise these unnecessary costs and financial burden, we offer our customers the possibility to sell surplus electricity and gas on the market," says Theo Parpan. Recently, thanks to enexion's flexible wholesale procurement strategy, a company in the building materials industry, which was forced to temporarily shut down some production sites due to the economic situation, was able to sell the already contracted energy quantities in the best possible way at very short notice. This meant that the energy that was not needed did not have to be paid for. At the same time, companies can better balance volatile energy market fluctuations and benefit from favourable procurement opportunities. Overall, this allows for long-term cost optimisation and alleviates financial bottlenecks. This is because diversified procurement sources and instruments, such as energy forward contracts, enable companies to reduce the risk of price peaks.

In view of the recently increased risk management demands in companies, it is more necessary than ever from a managerial liability perspective to implement appropriate procurement strategies. The risks of the energy market are now generally known and can hardly be denied. Further competitive benefits of the dynamic enexion procurement strategy open up for companies through the high degree of self-sufficiency in electricity and gas procurement as well as through the flexible and ESG-compliant integration option of renewable energies. In times of growing environmental awareness, sustainability aspects are increasingly being taken into account in company assessments for customers and investors. Again, flexibility is the order of the day. For example, companies that already operate their own photovoltaic systems can adjust the amount of energy they generate according to current demands. If more energy is produced than required, they can sell this surplus energy on the market and thus generate additional sources of income.

In this way, businesses adapt their energy production to their and electricity and gas consumption patterns much more efficiently than before. In addition, they have the opportunity to profit from the energy market volatilities. Theo Parpan: "Our procurement and management strategies for electricity, gas and CO2 are both flexible and solid. They offer energy-intensive companies the urgently needed protection against unforeseen price fluctuations and thus increase the company's stability in the long term. Anyone who wants to face the challenges of the changing economic environment successfully is well advised to invest in such a strategy as soon as possible."