Sam Hicks is Strategic Relationship and Product Development Manager at OnlineDIRECT. He says the broker can play a pivotal role in helping UK businesses move forward with Net Zero, especially in the SME and mid-market sectors.
“We’re seeing more and more Brokers asking questions around it. We know energy consumption is the second largest contributor to emissions in the UK, so there’s a role for the industry as a whole to tackle.
“The majority of UK SMEs still rely on a TPI to procure its energy so businesses are naturally going to look to TPIs for greater guidance on Net Zero.”
Ben Stocking, Director at Jonstar Energy Brokers agrees: “I personally am very passionate about the environment and have been talking to the clients about that from six years ago. Perhaps then a lot of the clients weren’t that switched on but today more and more are so and that’s fantastic to see.
“There is an opportunity for businesses to get ahead of the curve and it shouldn’t be about waiting for the rules to kick in.”
The growth in green offerings from suppliers is making that opportunity easier.
Liam Page, TPI Manager at Ecotricity predicts a surge in green energy: “In five years’ time, there will be even more true ‘green’ suppliers out there and we’ll see a shift away from customers opting for ‘brown’ suppliers. The change you can make by changing supplier, to someone who does offer green will really help businesses achieve its sustainability goals.
“The change is so easy and the results are so large, I really think we’re in a real point of shift at the moment.”
Duncan Wigney, director at SRD Technical, who is working closely with OnlineDIRECT to help businesses navigate through the Energy Transition, says waiting for laws to mandate change is not best for businesses.
He concludes: “It’s important to present this as an opportunity. There are short term gains here as well as long term gains and it goes further than compliance. The important thing isn’t about getting to net zero in 2050, it’s about starting now.”
Listen to the podcast discussion in full and if you’re an Energy Broker who’s looking to support your customers to Net-Zero, contact Sam Hicks on 01604 641363 to discuss more. Or visit this page.
This is a promoted article.
