On the pitch things are not going terribly well for Arsenal Football Club, one of the U.K.'s elite soccer outfits and a global brand, as it languishes outside the English Premier League competition's top four. However, off it, the club has become a different kind of a trailblazer winning plaudits for a signature move this season - its bold march towards renewable energy.
Last August, in a first for the League, Arsenal’s Emirates stadium – one of the most iconic sporting arenas in London with a 60,000-plus seating capacity – switched to 100% renewable energy.
Even more eye-catching was the fact that the club opted not to go with a global utility behemoth, but with independent supplier Octopus Energy; a startup that's aiming to "shake-up" the market, according to its Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Greg Jackson.
"Nothing behind our service provision and Arsenal's commitment to 100% renewable energy is cosmetic or adulterated in any way. It is what it says on the tin. So when you see the stadium lit by its 3 megawatt lights for evening soccer, they are running completely on renewable energy generated in real-time from plants using anaerobic digestion," Jackson says.
Octopus Energy and Arsenal first started talking in 2016 when the startup itself was in its operational infancy. "It was a breath of fresh air to find a club of Arsenal's stature to be as keen on renewable energy as us. But what was a pleasant surprise for us was also one that makes sense for Arsenal's brand.
"In the summer of that year, the club was approaching the end of its existing commercial electricity supply contract. Being a thought leader and global brand cognizant of its environmental footprint and responsibility to society, Arsenal contemplated the possibility of going for renewable energy and approached us.
"They wanted to make sure it was genuinely green energy that was financially sensible, i.e. supplied at not too dissimilar a price to their existing tariff. So we came together via a business partnership firmly believing that Octopus Energy as a supplier and Arsenal as a global sporting outfit can play a part in changing the world."
It was an impact statement that went down well among English soccer fans of all stripes despite the fierce and intense rivalry the League is known for. "Going green extends beyond soccer turf wars. Arsenal fans are proud of the move, and other fans want their clubs to follow suit."
And since Arsenal's move, Jackson says "a least half a dozen" sporting outfits have approached his company.
"This is a sign of times. Large companies and site operators are aiming to go entirely renewable with a mission statement to lower their carbon footprint; for instance our typical customers such as hotels and mid to large offices."
The company has big plans in the competitive U.K. market that's dominated by its so-called 'Big Six' suppliers – namely British Gas (owned by FTSE 100 firm Centrica), EDF Energy, npower, E.ON UK, Scottish Power and SSE.
In such a setting, starting up needs deep pockets and Octopus Energy, since its launch in late 2015, has been backed by the Octopus Group, a £7 billion ($9.8 billion) global investment fund.
Jackson says his outfit's agility and operational efficiency are crucial in the current market. "All our jobs from customer service through to trading are underpinned by digital, and unhindered by legacy estate and habits that our big competitors have. My dozen senior managers and colleagues are first among equals in a team of 100 people spread across two locations, with revenues of £160 million, that we have stacked up in a relatively short space of time."
As the company continues to grow, Jackson says he is all in favor of a free market but opines that the U.K. energy market is fundamentally flawed as British politicians of all stripes call for energy price caps.
"People say energy price caps will interfere in a free market. My take is that ours is not a free market – rather it is a market rigged against consumers. After 20 years of post-privatization regulation, British consumers are still getting bad value, spending somewhere between £1.4-£1.5 billion too much, largely down to the pricing policies of the large incumbents.
"Afterall, the regulator (Ofgem) has to listen to someone when drafting or amending the rules, and who has most at stake? The incumbents. Rule changes almost always tend to suit them, so what we really need is heavy action to break that dynamic, and not just oversimplified 'hot air' over energy price caps."
Jackson says the U.K. energy market could take inspiration from the country's competitive supermarkets. "For instance, the lowest priced energy tariff should be within 6% of the highest priced tariff; it is something that John Penrose, Conservative Party legislator, put forward nearly 5 years ago.
"Such forward thinking, rather than a linear price cap at some set level, is what’s required. Its the price range we see in our supermarkets for goods on shelves and it'll bring the level of competitiveness we see in the retail market to the energy market."
As for Octopus Energy, Jackson says no matter how competitive the landscape is, its 'Super Green' tariff, which supplies 100% renewable electricity and full carbon offsets for gas, will remain its mainstay.
"We're a challenger company, redefining energy service provision for customers aware of their carbon footprint. Its what we do and what keeps us going." Just ask Arsenal.
