Energy Users Council asks customers to get involved

Customers must play a greater role in shaping the future of the energy markets as the move to renewables gathers pace, according to Andrew Buckley, director general of the Major Energy Users Council.

He was speaking at the opening of a new HQ by energy firm Local Green Energy (LGE), which specialises in green energy procurement and risk management.

Buckley praised the company for helping customers buy energy at the right time and the right price, and added: “We have got to get an awful lot sharper and focus on how we meet the carbon challenge.

“Customers must have a greater role in shaping their energy future. They need to buy at the right time and the right price and the work of businesses such as Local Green Energy is key to that.

“Companies have got to switch to renewables because the cost of carbon is going up and up.

“They must take the initiative. We expect more volatility in the markets and customers must start to take control of their energy future, moving the focus from supply to demand.

“Companies who can reduce their demand and use local energy resources are going to be in the best place.”

LGE is part of green energy entrepreneur Simon Rigby’s business, Greengen Group. The energy procurement and risk management company has also unveiled a hi-tech trading floor as part of its move to Croft Court on Whitehills Business Park, Blackpool.

This enables LGE to trade green energy generated by the group’s own renewable energy power plants, as well as from other more traditional sources.

Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change Mark Menzies added: “This is a company before its time. Government policy is all about local energy generation and encouraging people to come together in the way they buy and trade energy.

“Local Green Energy does that – with a focus on green energy generation – and I am confident the company will be around for a very long time.”

Lancashire-based Rigby, who is LGE’s chairman, was founder and former ceo of the FTSE 250-listed utility services group Spice – now called the EnServe Group – before leaving to set up Greengen Group.

He said: “With an industry-leading set up, LGE’s cutting edge technology allows its highly qualified analysts and traders to manage risk efficiently and effectively, delivering real value for its procurement clients.”