A garden, gift and home retailer operating across several sites in the North West, set out to cut energy costs and carbon across its estate. Following strategic advice from Q Energy, the business planned a Net Zero roadmap starting with 237 kWp of solar PV and battery storage at its flagship Radcliffe site. The primary challenge was doing this without heavy upfront capital, and keeping the operational costs low.

With a combined annual consumption of more than 700,00 kWh across its eight contracted sites, half-hourly metering, and exposure to volatile wholesale prices and evening red-band charges, the client required a sophisticated layer of intelligent control. Q Energy was engaged to design a strategy that would guarantee savings and remove the financial barrier that usually blocks decarbonisation for SMEs.

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Q Energy conducted a thorough analysis and PV modelling, designing a bespoke energy strategy focused on funded storage and a smart energy trading solution under a dedicated smart battery tariff. This approach was engineered to deliver absolute budget certainty while unlocking additional savings beyond the guaranteed baseline. The key components of the solution included:

• Funded deployment of a 50 kW / 107 kWh Battery Energy Storage System to capture excess solar generation and capitalise on cheaper off-peak energy, with no upfront capital cost to Newbank.
• Deployment of the SmartQube hub and a cloud-based Energy and Carbon Management dashboard, providing site-wide visibility across grid imports, asset consumption and battery activity, with AI-driven control for automated energy trading, Demand Side Response and load-shifting away from expensive red-band peaks.
• Implementation of a guaranteed Smart Battery Tariff priced 1 p/kWh below the best available fixed market rate, paired with a Smart Export Tariff that guarantees income on excess generation sold back to the grid.
• As a licensed Asset Metering Virtual Lead Party (AMVLP) and Virtual Trading Party (VTP), Q Energy routes Newbank's battery into national balancing and flexibility markets, earning additional revenue from grid-balancing services that would otherwise be out of reach for an SME site.

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The implementation of the funded storage and intelligent control strategy delivers significant financial returns while accelerating the client's journey toward net zero. The business is expected to receive over £16,000 in combined benefits per year, with further bonus savings shared through performance upside:

• £7,000+ Guaranteed Annual Savings: The guaranteed 1 p/kWh lower unit rate ensures a baseline saving of over £7,000 per year against the best available fixed-rate market offers. 
• £4,800+ Guaranteed Export Income: Q Energy's innovative Smart Export Tariff guarantees income from excess electricity sold back to the grid, AI-traded to secure the best market rates while protecting Newbank from price volatility.
• £4,000+ Projected Excess Solar Value: By storing and using solar energy on-site rather than exporting it at a lower value, Newbank generates an additional £4,000+ in annual benefits.

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