People behind the projects: meet Glen Christie

Introducing Glen Christie, Team Lead, Demand Response Sales, at Shell Energy and the go-to expert on our Demand Response (DR) program. In this article, Glen shares what his days look like as part of the Demand Response team and why he thinks demand response is so important for businesses. 

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I grew up in Canada and spent the early part of my career working in several different countries in finance-based roles. I met my Australian wife, and we moved to Sydney together about 15 years ago. I knew I wanted to do something a little bit different and the main industry I was interested in moving into was energy. I knew there was a lot going on as the energy transition progresses and wanted to be a part of that.   

My first step to getting into the energy industry was to work for a consultant, where I heard a lot of positive things about Shell Energy’s culture. When the opportunity came up to join Shell Energy’s Demand Response team, I jumped at it.   

What does your typical day at Shell Energy look like?

A large part of my role is supporting our retail account managers, attending customer meetings and helping with proposals. So, the first thing that I do in a day is look through any enquiries coming in and identify if there are opportunities for customers to generate revenue through Demand Response.

For customers utilising more than 4GWh per annum, I’ll dig a little deeper and analyse their energy load to determine the potential revenue opportunity, so that our account managers can include this information in their proposals. 

What do you think is important for businesses to know about Demand Response?

Apart from the financial benefit, demand response also helps maintain grid stability by balancing supply and demand. Demand response can play a key role in enhancing flexibility and resilience across the system by helping align energy consumption with the growing levels of renewable generation in the grid. 

It’s also important for businesses to know that there is not just one type of demand response program, there are many different programs out there. But the way that Shell Energy offers demand response is quite accessible. 

What makes Shell Energy’s Demand Response solution different?

Shell Energy does not own or operate a baseload coal fired power station, and our trading team uses demand response to help manage market conditions, meaning that we call events as part of our retail DR program on a frequent basis. 

Our program is designed so our customers can access demand response simply and easily. For our retail demand response program, there’s no need to install any additional monitoring equipment unless the preference is for an automated response, in which case we can help to arrange the installation. 

By participating in our demand response program, customers receive regular payments and the amount they receive depends on how much they participate, whereas some other demand response service provider programs have a penalty for not participating. 

When an event is called, we send a text or email with clear instructions on when to lower and resume energy use or we remotely adjust energy on the site. By participating, customers support grid reliability and have the opportunity to generate revenue. 

If a customer decides that they don’t want to participate in a particular event – they might be behind in production or doing some maintenance, etc. – then that’s okay, we simply adjust payments according to the level of participation. 

Our retail customers also benefit from our ability to access their energy consumption data to manage our demand response program. As your electricity retailer, Shell Energy has access to your energy consumption data and is able to optimise demand response for your business. 

Is there anything else customers should know about demand response?

Demand response programs are a great, low-risk way to earn additional revenue. 

The value that businesses can unlock through Demand Response is quite high at the moment, particularly when compared to say two or three years ago. Shell Energy’s demand response team is uniquely positioned to ensure our customers are maximising the potential revenue available. If you’re not sure, reach out to your account manager to find out how we can help.