Utilities

Deregulation of the electricity, gas and water markets is a European phenomenon that has been going on for more than a decade. In the interests of spurring competition and giving the consumer greater choice, the process has created considerable complexities for the utility companies. Increasingly, they are obliged to separate energy production, transport and distribution - with obvious IT ramifications.
 

Deregulation is transforming utility companies. At the most fundamental level, it forces them to realign their business strategies, becoming more consumer-focused. But keeping consumers happy is a costly business that doesn't always exist easily with the budget constraints and increased marketing expenses that go hand-in-hand with more intense competition.

At the same time, deregulation makes billing more complex. As customers switch from supplier to supplier to get better deals, the transfer of essential data becomes an ongoing challenge. More accurate analysis and modelling can help to accelerate a company's ability to respond to market changes.

These market changes are occurring during a period of higher than ever energy and water prices, which undermine consumer confidence in the entire sector.
 

Fortunately, we've been through this before. Steria acquired significant experience during the late-20th century deregulation of the European telephone market. As far as IT systems and ancillary services are concerned, there are strong similarities.

In particular, we can provide a wide range of relevant consulting services that help clients adapt to shifts in regulatory requirements, create and implement billing and pre-billing procedures and improve customer relations management overall.
 

• Billing, capacity and balancing management (GAS-X)
• Customer care and billing
• Deregulation and unbundling
• Utilities business consulting
• Systems integration (including SAP and Siebel)