The cost, risk and mixed-portfolio option of fixed and indexed tariffs, using a 500 MWh site.
Electricity accounts for between 5 and 30 percent of a factory's production cost depending on the sector. That makes the supply contract one of the purchasing department's most critical decisions. There are two main options: a fixed price and a price indexed to the day-ahead market price (PTF).
Fixed price
The unit price does not change during the contract. The advantage is easier budget and selling-price planning. The disadvantage is that the supplier adds market risk to the price, so the average cost is slightly higher.
PTF-indexed price
Each month the unit price is calculated as the consumption-weighted average of the hourly prices formed in the day-ahead market plus a fixed margin. When the market falls the cost falls; when it rises the cost rises.
Comparison in numbers
Consider a site that consumes 500 MWh (500,000 kWh) a month. Let the September 2026 PTF average be 2.95 TRY/kWh:
| Scenario | Unit price | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed price | 3.12 TRY | 1,560,000 TRY |
| Indexed (PTF + 0.03 TRY) | 2.98 TRY | 1,490,000 TRY |
| Indexed, if PTF rises 20% | 3.57 TRY | 1,785,000 TRY |
Under normal conditions the indexed tariff gives an advantage of 70,000 TRY, but if the market rises 20 percent it falls 225,000 TRY behind the fixed price.
Which is right?
The decision depends on three questions: 1. Can you pass product price changes on to customers quickly? If so, indexed risk is manageable. 2. Can you shift your consumption? Sites that can move shifts and machine start-up programmes to cheap hours benefit more from indexed. 3. Can your cash flow withstand swings? Businesses that cannot carry short-term cost spikes should choose fixed.
Mixed portfolio
Many industrial sites buy part of their consumption (for example 50 - 70 percent) at a fixed price and the rest indexed. This gives both budget predictability and a share of market declines. Akımer Enerji's large-consumer offers provide this structure.
An extra tip
Use the hourly consumption monitoring portal to examine your peak-hour consumption and reactive energy charges; at some sites a compensation fix alone saves 2 - 3 percent a year.
Clauses to read in the contract
Besides the price, read these clauses: consumption tolerance (the allowed deviation from the committed amount), penalties or discounts for deviation, invoicing and payment terms, collateral requirements and price update conditions. In indexed contracts it should also be clear whether the margin is fixed or variable and which hours count in the PTF calculation.