Are you overpaying for environmental charges on your energy bill? 

Environmental certificate costs are often the most overlooked line on a commercial or industrial energy bill. Most buyers treat them as fixed, bundled into the electricity or gas contract and managed by the retailer. Negotiation effort goes into tariffs, demand charges and network costs. Environmental charges get a fraction of the scrutiny. 

They shouldn’t. By buying environmental certificates directly from Northmore Gordon and handing them to your retailer to surrender on your behalf, you can cut this component of your bill by 50%. 

How environmental charges are built into your contract 

Environmental certificates, VEECs, LGCs, STCsSmall-scale Technology Certificate under the Australian Renewable Energy Target. More and ESCs, are required under various regulatory schemes. The obligation to surrender them is fixed by law. How you buy them is not. 

In a traditional energy supply arrangement, the retailer sources the certificates, bundles them into your contract, and passes the cost through to you. It’s convenient. They also add a procurement margin and often hide the underlying price. For a large energy user across multiple sites, that margin quietly becomes a material cost. 

Already signed your energy contract? You can probably still act 

Many buyers assume that once the contract is signed, certificate costs are locked in. They usually aren’t. Most contracts allow the customer to provide their own certificates to meet scheme obligations. You buy them yourself, hand them to the retailer, and the retailer surrenders them under the scheme. Same certificates, same compliance outcome, lower cost. 

What this looks like for a 25 GWh manufacturer 

A manufacturing facility using 25-30 GWh of electricity a year can face environmental certificate obligations of $150,000-$400,000. 

If those certificates are bought through a retailer with a 5-10% margin, the hidden cost is $7,500-$40,000 a year. For every $1 million spent on certificates, a 5-10% margin adds $50,000-$100,000. 

How Northmore Gordon can help 

We review your energy contracts, analyse how certificate costs are priced, and source certificates directly on your behalf. You keep the same compliance position, we cut out the margin and save you money. 

To see what you could save, contact Northmore Gordon.