Scaling SAFe in large-scale energy organisations: How executives can harness the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) to accelerate the energy transition

Executive Summary

The energy transition in Australia is scaling at unprecedented speed. Renewable energy zones, electrification, digitalisation, and regulatory reform are converging to reshape how energy is generated, distributed, and consumed.

For energy companies and corporates with large national footprints, the challenge is not ambition but execution. The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) provides a structured yet flexible model to align strategy and delivery across large, complex enterprises—accelerating time-to-value, reducing risk, and building resilience.

At Agile Energy, we help businesses translate these principles into practice through flexible Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), portfolio rollouts across multiple sites, and monitoring tools that ensure executives maintain real-time visibility and control.

The scale of the challenge

Australia requires $121 billion in renewable energy investment this decade to meet 2030 targets (Clean Energy Council, 2024).

The AEMO Integrated System Plan forecasts a nine-fold increase in solar and five-fold increase in wind capacity by 2050.

Corporates with large footprints—retailers, logistics, manufacturers, and property owners—spend tens to hundreds of millions annually on energy, making it a material impact on EBITDA.

ESG frameworks (CDP, SBTi) require clear, auditable reporting, with penalties and reputational risk for non-compliance.

Execution is the bottleneck - corporates need operating models that keep pace with shifting policy, incentives, and investor expectations.

What is SAFe?

The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) enables enterprises to embed agility into their governance and delivery models.

Key features include:

• Strategic alignment – Linking decarbonisation goals to execution teams.

• Program Increments (PIs) – Quarterly cycles that provide visibility, accountability, and adaptability.

• Lean portfolio management – Reallocating capital dynamically instead of locking it in annually.

• Cross-functional delivery – Squads and Agile Release Trains that move projects forward in synchrony.

At Agile Energy, our flexible PPA and portfolio delivery models are structured to fit into this cadence—so executives can shift strategy quarterly without restarting contracts or approvals.

Why large corporates need SAFe + Agile Energy

• Multi-site complexity

Large organisations manage hundreds of sites with diverse energy profiles. Agile Energy supports this through portfolio PPAs, enabling rollouts across retail, logistics, and property footprints while prioritising sites with the greatest financial and operational impact.

• Faster energy savings

Traditional procurement locks companies into long approval cycles. Our no upfront-capital PPAs align with SAFe by allowing projects to go live quickly, while executives retain the flexibility to buy out systems at any point as strategy evolves.

• ESG & investor confidence

Boards and investors expect structured, auditable delivery. Agile Energy provides quarterly portfolio reporting on cost savings, carbon reductions, and system performance—mirroring the SAFe cadence of Program Increments.

• Risk mitigation

Energy markets are volatile—prices can swing 30–50% year-on-year. By structuring PPAs across portfolios and providing real-time monitoring, Agile Energy helps corporates spread risk and capture early wins, instead of relying on mega-projects with long lead times.

Application for Australian corporates

SAFe principles can be applied to:

• Portfolio energy management – Quarterly capital allocation across solar, storage, and EV  charging, supported by Agile Energy’s portfolio rollout model.

• Corporate PPAs – Flexible agreements that scale with your footprint and give executives the ability to purchase systems outright at any stage.

• Real-time monitoring – Agile Energy’s platform integrates energy, cost, and emissions data across all sites for executive dashboards.

• Stakeholder alignment – Coordinated engagement with landlords, tenants, and boards to ensure projects move quickly without conflict.

Conclusion

For corporates with large national footprints, the energy transition is both a cost risk and a strategic opportunity. Scaling agile ways of working through SAFe enables leaders to synchronise strategy and delivery, pivot capital allocation quarterly, and maintain investor

confidence.

At Agile Energy, we’ve built our offerings—flexible PPAs, portfolio rollouts, and monitoring tools—around these principles, giving executives the ability to move at the speed of the transition without locking into rigid models.

Agility isn’t just a methodology—it’s the foundation for powering Australia’s corporate energy future.

‍