Powergen - Home Energy

Building a case for investment in a disruptive distributed generation technology.

Challenge

Powergen were aware of the future threat from deregulation and the emergence of distributed generation technology*, but they needed to understand how good the technology was, when it would hit the market and how much impact it would have.

They also needed a defence strategy and new propositions to offset potential revenue losses if the technology came to market.

Edengene's Approach

Edengene undertook a strategic impact programme and created a model to show the potential effect on Powergen’s core business.

• The team forecast the technology take up and commissioned technical due diligence on the leading distributed generation products in the market.
• Significantly, highlighted that the key individuals to be influenced in the purchase chain were not the consumers but the engineers who installed and fitted the energy appliances.
• From this insight, Edengene developed a business case for a retail installation business that enabled Powergen to influence the purchases of consumers and remove any risk attached to investing in the new technology.

Outcome

• £6m investment case for Home Energy Services business unit signed-off
• £1m investment case for distributed generation technology signed off
• Powergen positioned to maximise benefit and minimise threat from distributed generation take up
• A platform provided for broader range of home services

*The technology behind distributed generation enables a normal high efficiency gas boiler, providing heat and hot water, to drive a generator to produce electricity. The electricity generated from the boiler can be used to power electrical appliances in the home and cut household bills.