Agile Advantage Ed. 14 - Winning the war on peak prices: Load Shifting, Storage and Smart Controls for C&I

Summary

Commercial and Industrial (C&I) electricity users in Australia face growing financial exposure from peak demand charges and volatile wholesale market prices. Even brief consumption spikes can result in disproportionately high network costs, while market fluctuations increase operational uncertainty.

According to the Australian Energy Regulator (AER), electricity tariffs for 2025?26 have risen up to 2.45% in some regions, while wholesale market volatility remains a key challenge.

Agile Energy has supported numerous businesses through load shifting, on-site storage, and intelligent control systems, reducing exposure to peak tariffs, enhancing resilience, and enabling revenue participation in demand response and Virtual Power Plant (VPP) programs. Proactive peak management can deliver 10- 20% savings on network charges.

The Peak Price Challenge

C&l electricity costs increasingly reflect maximum demand, rather than total consumption. In Australia, demand charges are typically based on the highest 15- or 30-minute average during billing cycles, often accounting for 30?50% of total costs for high-usage sites.

Contributing factors

• Tariff restructuring: Networks have introduced variable demand charges, increasing prices by 2-5% to fund infrastructure

• Wholesale volatility: AEMO reports record demand levels and heatwave-driven price spikes, e.g. May 2025 averaged $83/MWh

• Decarbonisation requirements: Mandatory climate reporting and net-zero pathways necessitate adoption of low-carbon technologies

Without proactive management, businesses risk elevated costs, reduced competitiveness, and operational vulnerability, particularly as supply gaps are projected under extreme conditions from 2028

Strategy 1: Load Shifting

Load shifting schedules high-energy processes outside peak electricity periods, achieving 10-20% reductions in demand charges.

Key approaches

• Pre-cooling or pre-heating facilities before peak periods

• Running energy-intensive processes during off-peak hours or midday solar surplus

• Aligning operations with price forecasts and flexible demand trials funded by ARENA

Case Study - Sydney Cold Storage

Pre-cooling during high solar generation periods resulted in 18% reduction in annual network demand charges without major infrastructure investment.

Strategy 2: On-Site Storage

Battery storage allows energy to be stored when costs are low and deployed during peak periods. With installations surging in 2025 and projected capacity reaching 18 GW by 2035, storage is increasingly accessible.

Benefits

• Reduces peak demand-related charges

• Mitigates wholesale price volatility

• Generates revenue through VPP and FCAS participation

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Case Study - Victorian Manufacturing Facility

A 2.5MW battery integrated with solar discharged during monthly peak intervals, achieving $750,000 annual network savings and additional revenue from ancillary services

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Strategy 3: Smart Control Systems

Intelligent controls integrate assets and automate responses to price signals, reducing energy use by 15-30%

Applications

• Automated management of HVAC, lighting, and process equipment

• Predictive energy scheduling based on market forecasts

• Integration with distributed generation and flexible loads

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Case Study - Brisbane Office Tower

Al-driven demand response reduced peak costs by $320,000 in the first year, without impacting occupant comfort

Integrated Approach to Peak Management

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Strategy Combination: Load shifting + storage

Purpose: Covers inflexible processes with battery support

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Strategy Combination: Smart controls + storage:

Purpose: Optimises battery deployment and market participation

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Strategy Combination: Load shifting + smart controls

Purpose: Automates peak avoidance consistently

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This integrated approach enables proactive peak management, amplifying savings and efficiency

Implementation Framework

1. Audit & Analyse: Identify peak drivers using AEMO demand and AER tariff data.

2. Solution Design: Tailor load shifting, storage, and smart controls to operational and decarbonisation goals.

3. Pilot & Optimise: Deploy on selected sites and refine iteratively.

4. Value Realisation: Participate in VPP or demand response programs to generate additional revenue streams.

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Conclusion

Effective peak management is both a strategic challenge and an opportunity. Implementing an integrated strategy of load shifting, on-site storage, and intelligent controls enables C&I businesses to reduce exposure to peak tariffs, mitigate market volatility, and enhance resilience.

With projected operational consumption increases of 28% by 2034 and ongoing tariff evolution, proactive adoption is essential. Agile Energy demonstrates that these strategies deliver measurable financial savings, operational efficiency, and potential revenue generation, while supporting national decarbonisation objectives.

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