Is your kVA too high? A landowner’s guide to fixing it

Running an estate means balancing costs across farming operations, tenanted buildings, residential lets and sometimes commercial units. Energy isn’t just another bill; it’s often one of the largest ongoing expenses. Yet hidden within those bills is something many landowners overlook: the kVA limit. Get it wrong, and you could be paying thousands of pounds more than you should each year.

Why kVA matters on a landed estate

kVA, or kilovolt-amperes, is the measure of the capacity you’ve agreed with your electricity network operator. Think of it as the upper ceiling of demand your estate is allowed to draw at any one time.

• If the ceiling is set too high, you’re paying for capacity you never actually use.

• If it’s set too tight, you risk penalties for exceeding the agreed level.

For estates with multiple meters across farms, cottages, workshops and office spaces, keeping track of kVA can be complicated. One meter may be comfortably within its limit, while another is creeping close to the edge. Without visibility, it’s easy to assume everything is fine while quietly overspending.

How to check your maximum demand

The first step to knowing whether your kVA is right is to look at your bills. On each electricity bill, there’s usually a section labelled Maximum Demand. This shows the highest level of demand your site has reached in the billing period.

• Compare this figure to your agreed kVA limit.

• If your maximum demand is consistently far below your limit, you may be paying for capacity you don’t need.

• If it’s brushing close to the limit, you may want to check if one-off events are pushing it up or if your day-to-day load is genuinely too high.

Challenges of managing multiple meters

Unlike a single-site business, landed estates rarely have one neat electricity supply to manage. Instead, you may be dealing with:

• A dairy farm requiring steady supply

• Grain dryers or irrigation pumps spiking usage seasonally

• Residential properties pulling demand at different times

• Outbuildings or workshops with unpredictable loads

This complexity makes it difficult to keep a clear view across your estate. One building could have plenty of spare capacity while another is at risk of breaching limits. Without a central review, the overall picture stays hidden.

A real example: Robert Thomas Farms

We recently reviewed the energy setup at Robert Thomas Farms. Their kVA limit had been set far higher than they needed. By analysing their maximum demand across meters and realigning their limits, they were able to reduce costs by £25,476 a year.

This wasn’t about cutting energy use, it was about making sure they weren’t paying for capacity that served no purpose. For agricultural businesses, where margins are under pressure, savings like this can make a real difference.

Practical tips for landowners

If you’re unsure about whether your kVA is too high or too tight, here are some steps you can take:

1. Check each meter individually

   Don’t rely on one site’s data to represent the estate. Look at maximum demand across all supplies.

2. Review seasonal peaks

   Machinery like grain dryers may cause sharp spikes. Make sure your agreed limit covers these but doesn’t sit far above them for the rest of the year.

3. Keep an eye on penalties

   If you’ve ever been charged excess capacity fees, it’s a sign your kVA may be too tight.

4. Compare against actual usage

   If your maximum demand is consistently half of your limit, it may be time to reduce the agreed level.

5. Seek an independent review

   Sometimes a fresh set of eyes can reveal mismatches that aren’t obvious from bills alone.

Why this often gets missed

Energy contracts tend to focus on unit rates and standing charges, while capacity is set once and then forgotten. On large estates with many moving parts, that can mean you’re still paying based on assumptions made years ago, long before changes in usage patterns, tenant numbers or new buildings.

Could you be overspending?

It’s easy to assume energy costs are fixed, but Robert Thomas Farms proved that’s not the case. By reviewing your estate’s kVA setup, you could uncover savings that have been hiding in plain sight.

If you’d like a no-cost review of your kVA limits across your estate, we can help you see whether your setup is right or costing you more than it should. Get in touch on 0808 164 6151 or energyservices@cla.org.uk