Hotel utility procurement that respects seasonality, brand standards and SECR reality.
Independent consultancy for hotel groups, resorts, serviced apartment operators and conference venues. F&B, spa, laundry, conference and EV-charger demand are not a footnote on your bill — they shape the whole tariff. We tender every renewal across the whole UK market with our commission disclosed in writing on every quote.
Hotels carry a uniquely difficult demand profile. A four-star city property might run at 92% occupancy on a Tuesday in March and 38% on a Saturday in August; a coastal resort runs the opposite pattern. Add a spa with continuous pool heating, an in-house laundry running on diesel boilers, an event suite with conference power demand peaking at lunchtime and a kitchen running gas-fired ranges through service, and you have a load curve that almost no off-the-shelf product prices fairly. Then add water — the single fastest-growing utility cost in the sector since the non-household market opened in 2017.
Our role as an independent UK utility consultancy is to bring this complexity into one consolidated procurement and compliance file, sit it alongside your SECR, ESOS and brand- standard ESG reporting, and tender it competitively across every licensed B2B supplier and water retailer. We do not white-label energy on behalf of a single supplier; we do not take overrides from a panel; and our commission is disclosed in writing on every quote in the tender pack.
Common issues we see in hotel estates
- Half-hourly sites on contracts priced against an annualised flat profile, with no seasonal weighting and no Triad-period mitigation.
- Surface-water drainage charged against a site plan that pre-dates the last car-park or terrace refurbishment.
- Spa, pool and laundry submetered for internal cost-allocation but never reconciled to the supply meter.
- EV chargers installed on a capacity uplift that was never costed against the resulting standing-charge increase.
- Deemed-rate periods after a brand reflag or change of operator, where the meter was never formally novated.
- SECR data assembled at year-end from incomplete supplier portals, then signed off without an aggregated reconciliation.
What we look at on a typical hotel audit
The audit is free, runs against twelve months of invoices and a current site plan, and is returned in writing within 48 working hours.
- 01Half-hourly load profile review against contract pricing assumptions, including weekend, summer and Christmas weighting.
- 02Available Capacity (kVA) versus actual peak demand for every HH meter, with proposed kVA reduction where headroom is unused.
- 03DUoS band classification (Red, Amber, Green) and Triad-period exposure under the Targeted Charging Review framework.
- 04Reactive power and power-factor charges, with correction-equipment payback modelled where penalties are recurring.
- 05Surface-water drainage area validated against an aerial site survey or current site plan.
- 06Trade effluent consent for in-house laundry, kitchen grease-trap and pool backwash discharges.
- 07CCL declaration accuracy and VAT certificate alignment per meter.
- 08SECR data feed quality: kWh, fuel type, intensity ratio and methodology defensibility.
- 09ESOS Phase 4 readiness: 95% significant-consumption coverage and Lead Assessor data feed.
- 10Commission disclosure on the incumbent contract and renewal-window timing across the portfolio.
Procurement considerations specific to hospitality
Seasonality is the variable that most generic comparison tools fail to handle well. A hotel with a materially different summer and winter profile is misrepresented by an annualised AQ figure, and suppliers tend to price defensively against the uncertainty. We tender with a true monthly consumption schedule and, for groups consuming above roughly 1 GWh per year aggregated, model a flexible or basket procurement strategy where blocks of energy are bought across the year. This smooths peak-day wholesale exposure and is often materially better than a single fixed price.
EV charger installation is now the second-largest driver of capacity-charge change in our hotel client base. A standard 22 kW destination charger is rarely the issue; a 150 kW rapid charger installed for guest acquisition is, and the capacity uplift can outlast the actual demand by years. We model the kVA implication before installation, build the capacity charges into the project ROI, and revisit Available Capacity once real usage data is in.
REGO-backed renewable supply and PPA-linked procurement are now a brand-standard requirement for several international flag operators. Where you operate under a franchise that mandates Scope 2 renewable disclosure, we structure supply that produces an audit trail capable of withstanding brand audit and third-party assurance — not just a cheap unbundled REGO certificate that meets the letter of the rule.
Regulations that hit hotel utility files hardest
SECR (Streamlined Energy & Carbon Reporting)
Mandatory disclosure in the directors' report for large UK companies and quoted groups. Hotel groups frequently qualify on turnover and headcount. Data integrity matters: estimated reads and supplier-portal exports rarely reconcile cleanly without intervention.
ESOS Phase 4
Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme audit due by 5 December 2027 for qualifying large undertakings. Procurement decisions should align to ESOS recommendations rather than ignore them — Phase 4 introduces stronger reporting expectations than earlier phases.
Climate Change Levy
Applied to non-domestic energy supply at the standard rate unless reduced-rate or exempt categories apply. Worth checking the VAT certificate at every meter, particularly after a refurbishment or change of use.
TCR / DCP161 capacity charges
The Targeted Charging Review reshaped DUoS recovery, and DCP161 introduced excess-capacity penalties for HH sites exceeding their Available Capacity. Both bite hardest after EV-charger or kitchen retrofit projects.
Deemed contract regime
After a brand reflag, change of operator or refurbishment shutdown-restart, supplies frequently default to deemed rates. These are not capped in the non-domestic market and are routinely well above tendered prices.
Hotel operator questions, answered straight.
We are an independent UK utility consultancy aligned with the Ofgem TPI Code of Practice principles. Whole-of-market procurement, transparent commission disclosure, and one consolidated compliance file across your portfolio.
Request a portfolio audit- Streamlined Energy & Carbon Reporting catches large UK companies and quoted groups that meet two of three thresholds in a financial year: 250 employees, £36m turnover or £18m balance sheet. Hotel groups very often qualify on turnover and headcount even where individual properties would not. Reporting is a director's report disclosure, not a separate filing, but the underlying data must be defensible. We assemble the energy data set property by property, reconcile to invoiced kWh, and provide the workings for your auditor.
Send us one bill. We'll send back every overcharge — and the cheapest legitimate replacement.
Whether you run a Mayfair restaurant group or rent a flat in Salford, the audit is the same and the fee is the same: nothing, unless we save you money.