Behind the Scenes of One of Europe’s Most Complex Energy Portfolios
When you’re managing energy for one of the world’s leading data centre operators, the margins for error are razor-thin and the stakes sky-high.
Just ask Ruari Cairns, True Group’s Director of Risk Management. In early 2022, he was called in to help support one of Europe’s most demanding fast-moving energy portfolios. The client, a hyperscale operator with sites across the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland and Italy, was growing rapidly, onboarding new countries and managing mission-critical infrastructure that simply couldn’t afford to go dark.
It wasn’t just about getting the best deal on energy. It was about managing volatility, eliminating risk and helping the client move at speed all without breaking a sweat.
Big Ambitions, Bigger Footprint
Each country had its own rules, suppliers, billing frameworks and market behaviours. Sites were going live. Meters were being installed. Forecasts were changing by the week. And the energy market? Wildly unstable.
Ruari and his team were tasked with building a strategy that could keep up. That meant putting smart hedging in place, spotting procurement opportunities in the noise, flagging supplier errors and responding to ad hoc requests within hours not weeks.
When a £4.2 million TRIAD charge landed unexpectedly on the UK side of the business, they needed to get to the bottom of it fast.
And alongside the day-to-day trading and budgeting support, there was a broader ambition too: to lay the foundations for a long-term, pan-European sustainability strategy, one that included the potential for PPAs and investment in renewables across the estate.
Putting Power Behind the Plan
Ruari brought structure to the storm.
Working hand-in-hand with the client’s procurement and finance teams, True Group set up dynamic price triggers and buying strategies, creating the flexibility to trade when the market worked in their favour. Live budgets were delivered and updated to reflect real-time shifts in usage and volume, helping both the operator and its end customers stay aligned.
Our bill validation process left no charge unchallenged. In one example, we identified that a supplier’s proposed £4.2 million TRIAD charge significantly exceeded our expectations. Thanks to our forensic analysis, we challenged the invoice and ensured the client was correctly billed £1.2 million, preventing a £3 million overcharge before it was ever paid.
Meanwhile in Germany, Ruari’s trading strategy delivered €4.9 million in savings. In Switzerland, we ran a competitive tender that delivered a 41 percent saving versus the incumbent supplier, totalling CHF 1.8 million across 2024 and 2025. And in Poland, we helped the client secure a greener, cheaper energy supply worth over €500,000 in projected annual savings for 2025.
The savings weren’t just big. They were consistent, clever and repeatable. And our support didn’t stop there. We’ve helped the client evaluate long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) options, modelling commercial and carbon performance to inform their roadmap for renewable energy investment. In total, we helped secure over £30 million in procurement savings for the UK portfolio alone.
We’ve also supported their site selection process by providing forecast reports across target markets in Europe, a critical input for major investment decisions in a sector where location, scalability and speed to market can make or break a project.
Savings That Span a Continent
€37m total savings
delivered across procurement, validation and trading.
41% saving in Switzerland
versus incumbent supplier — CHF 1.4m saved.
£3m TRIAD charge reversed
from a £4.2m invoice down to £1.2m.
5 countries supported
UK, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland & Italy.
Today, the operator is continuing to expand but with a solid scalable energy strategy in place. That includes five countries and counting, proof that True Group’s European expertise is as robust as our UK foundation. Ruari and the True Group team remain embedded in their operations, from onboarding new sites and suppliers to negotiating prices, running forecasts, and advising on everything from renewable compliance to DSO planning.
It’s complex. It’s high pressure. And it’s exactly what True Group was built for.
As Ruari puts it: “This is where we’re at our best, helping customers take control, save money, and stay calm when the stakes are high.”
Because for businesses powering the digital world, energy isn’t just a line item. It’s a lifeline. And with the right people and platform in place, it’s a competitive advantage too.