OVO and AGL in joint venture to put customers at the centre of the energy transition
London and Sydney - Monday, 29th March 2021 - OVO, the UK’s leading zero carbon living brand, and AGL Energy [ASX:AGL], Australia’s largest energy retailer and generator, today announced an agreement to bring cutting edge digital services to Australia.
The collaboration gives AGL exclusive access in Australia to Kaluza, OVO’s advanced customer experience and energy flexibility platform, which has been developed to power millions of customer accounts. Kaluza’s AI-enabled platform delivers world-class tooling for retailers to transform their operations and provide customers with a rich digital experience and real-time energy insights that help them reduce their bills. At the same time, Kaluza orchestrates the charging of electric vehicles, energy storage systems and other flexible home devices to enable the shift to a low-carbon energy future.
As part of the agreement, AGL will invest in OVO Energy Australia to adapt the Kaluza platform for Australia and serve a growing customer base with innovative products and services. The companies will work together, drawing on their expertise in low-carbon innovation and energy retail, to develop digital customer experiences that may ultimately help support AGL’s customers who are looking to reduce their costs and carbon emissions.
Australia has one of the highest levels of rooftop solar generation in the world and ensuring grid stability is a priority as energy supply continues to decentralise. Kaluza’s advanced software is primed to help towards solving these grid challenges by intelligently shifting device charging to times of lower demand.
In Australia, AGL supplies 4.2 million services to customers and is leading in the business of transition to a low-carbon energy future, including the publication last year of its Climate Statement commitments with a clear path to decarbonisation. AGL shares OVO’s vision for a low-carbon future built around the customer. The agreement is a prime example of the digital revolution taking place across the globe in energy.
Stephen Fitzpatrick, CEO and Founder of OVO said:
“While the shift to renewables is driving decarbonisation of the power sector, the hard work of tackling carbon emissions in the rest of the economy, in particular the residential sector, is just beginning.
Ultimately, success will come down to turning consumers into willing, active participants in the energy transition. Companies must now focus on building trust with their customers, harnessing technology that makes zero carbon living simple and affordable for everyone. The Kaluza platform uses real-time data to create a uniquely personalised digital experience, making it easy for the customer to engage with energy and their own carbon footprint.
We are proud to be working with AGL, a true household name in Australia, to bring the power of our technology to a market that is at the forefront of the zero carbon revolution.
Brett Redman, Managing Director and CEO at AGL said:
“Through this joint venture, OVO and AGL will bring world-class technology and innovation to Australia.
Central to the market forces that shape our strategy, is customer demand. This collaboration will help us ensure our customers have choice and flexibility when it comes to their essential services.
AGL has been evolving our offerings, with carbon-neutral, multi-product options and decentralised energy solutions and this will allow us to continue into the future.
At AGL, we believe that the future of energy in Australia will be smart and affordable and we are committed to playing a leading role in developing a pathway to a modern decarbonised energy system.
Our agreement with OVO represents an exciting opportunity to work together to meet that objective, exploring the right innovative systems to meet future demand and digitising the customer experience.”
Notes to Editors
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OVO media office: media@ovoenergy.com
About OVO
OVO is a collection of companies driving progress to net zero carbon living through harnessing clean, affordable energy for everyone. Across the group, OVO serves nearly 5 million customers with intelligent energy technology solutions to decarbonise homes. Founded in 2009 by Stephen Fitzpatrick, OVO redesigned the energy experience to be fairer, greener and simpler for all. Today, OVO is on a mission through its sustainability strategy, Plan Zero, to tackle the most important issue of our time - the climate crisis.
Part of OVO, Kaluza is a leading intelligent energy platform powering the future of energy. From revolutionising billing to smart electric vehicle charging, Kaluza’s technology is empowering some of the biggest energy suppliers to better serve millions of customers. Its real-time cloud platform transforms supplier operations, reducing cost to serve and boosting customer engagement. Powered by Kaluza, suppliers can invest in innovating for tomorrow’s customers and drive decarbonisation with smart, low carbon technologies that not only reduce energy bills, but lay the foundations for a more flexible energy system.