Client
Restaurant operator with 40 sit-down stores and stadium concession stands.
Challenge
Keeping sandwiches hot and beers cold takes energy. With increasing electricity and natural gas costs, Cost Control Associate’s client sought to validate they were getting the best rates possible from their existing energy broker.
Solution
The grocery chain’s Chief Financial Officer hired Cost Control Associates (CCA) to assess their energy accounts and contracts and to identify opportunities for better pricing.
CCA’s project lead, Joe Scicutella, worked directly with the CFO and identified some major gaps in the chain’s energy portfolio:
- The chain was at the mercy of volatile energy marketplace pricing because annual contracts for many locations had expired and converted to month-to-month.
- Unexpired contracts contained punitive language and contractual pitfalls that allowed incumbent carriers to assess large fees if the chain didn’t meet certain usage thresholds.
- Contracts were scheduled to end in January 2023, a historically bad time to negotiate pricing.
In addition, the client had not achieved best-in-class pricing, leaving room for CCA to negotiate improved rates.
Result
CCA took over management of the chain’s entire portfolio and performed a deeper analysis of invoices and agreements. We connected with stakeholders in the chain’s Accounting and Finance departments and engaged four suppliers via RFP for both electricity and natural gas pricing.
CCA received pricing from each supplier and compared it to industry benchmarks and our understanding of marketplace trends. We modeled the financial impact of each supplier’s proposal based on historical volumes and presented our analysis and recommendations, including a strategic plan to delay the contract start dates to May 2023 based on the value of futures pricing.
The client accepted CCA’s recommendation for a fixed-cost, all-in pricing solution with a single supplier for natural gas and multiple suppliers for electricity. A total of 6 agreements were negotiated and locked in for a 36-month time period, all with best-in-class pricing.
The Restaurant Chain is projected to save $700,000 on Energy Utilities over the term of their new contract.
CCA Services
Energy Procurement
Utility Data Management
Joe Scicutella is an energy procurement analyst for Cost Control Associates. He helps his clients obtain energy supply at the optimal price. He keeps his thumb on the pulse of the energy marketplace by monitoring supply, providing insights, working with suppliers to obtain pricing and negotiate contracts. Joe currently manages more than $2.5 billion in total client annual spend and has saved his clients more than $2.8mm on costs since July 2019. Learn more.