Published weekly, the Cielo Index is the first tool of its kind to show the average full delivery price at which energy companies are selling gas and electricity to domestic customers. Using independent data from more than 40 UK energy suppliers, the Index provides the average ‘per day’ and ‘p/KWh’ costs for the UK’s most common gas and electricity contracts, as well as separating out renewable and non-renewable energy generation.
According to the company, it’s the first time that any comparison tool has drilled down into contract length and generation. Each week these categories will remain consistent, allowing for easy energy benchmarking, trade analysis and contract indexation. The aim of the pricing index is to enable energy suppliers, aggregators and brokers to guarantee a competitive renewal price at the end of a customer’s contract, while managing the risks by using the index.
The Cielo Index has been created by energy executive and Managing Director, Stuart Lloyd-Evans, who has spent 25 years working for some of the UK’s leading energy companies. Lloyd-Evans explains, “Energy pricing is complex and while that’s important to understand from a policy cost perspective, consumers don’t always want to engage in that narrative. What really matters to them is the end price.
“Having worked in hedging and energy pricing for most of my career, I was always frustrated there wasn’t a simple energy price comparison tool like this available. You’d want to launch a new product that would guarantee customers the best deal on the market, but the risks were too high while there was no reliable independent price index.”
Lloyd-Evans gave that as the reason he created the Cielo Index. He sees it as the missing piece of the jigsaw that brings “much needed transparency to the market. It helps suppliers focus on creating more competitive products that will drive customer loyalty and brand value, whilst allowing customers to make sense of their energy bills.”
Looking ahead, as smart technology helps customers harness the benefits of real-time market fluctuations - with the roll out of smart meters and the introduction of more flexible pricing and tariffs - Lloyd-Evans also believes the index will allow suppliers and aggregators to provide customers with a simple and effective message.
He concluded, “The Cielo Index will give all parties a reference point to benchmark against and avoid making customers’ bills more complicated than they need to be.”
