Veterinary Practice Energy

A mixed practice running day surgery, overnight monitoring, and an out-of-hours emergency rota will consume energy around the clock, every day of the year. The autoclave runs before the first procedure of the morning and after the last one of the evening. The anaesthetic gas scavenging system runs continuously whenever the operating theatre is in use. The vaccine refrigerators and controlled drug cold storage don’t switch off at 18:00. For most veterinary practices, energy costs sit between £15,000 and £40,000 a year — and the profile that drives those costs is considerably more complex than the standard commercial property the rates are often priced against.

Autoclaves: high energy per cycle, real scheduling opportunity

Veterinary autoclaves — used to sterilise surgical instruments and drapes — are electrically intensive. A typical bench-top autoclave rated at 3 to 6kW will consume 1.5 to 3 kWh per sterilisation cycle, and a busy surgical practice may run four to eight cycles a day. Where the electricity contract is on a half-hourly meter with time-of-use pricing, there is a genuine opportunity to run autoclave cycles in off-peak periods — early morning before opening, or at lunchtime when wholesale prices tend to be lower than the morning and evening peaks. For a practice running eight cycles a day, optimal scheduling of those cycles can deliver 10 to 15% savings on the autoclave’s contribution to the electricity bill.

Anaesthetic gas scavenging: the invisible ventilation load

Anaesthetic gas scavenging systems — which capture waste anaesthetic gases from the operating theatre to prevent staff exposure — create a continuous ventilation demand during all surgical sessions. The scavenging system must maintain negative pressure in the theatre relative to adjacent areas, which means the extract fan runs continuously whenever surgery is in progress. Combine this with the fresh air requirements for an operating theatre environment (typically 15 to 20 air changes per hour) and the HVAC load in a veterinary surgical suite is substantially higher than an equivalent area of general office or clinical space.

24-hour emergency facilities: the continuous load

Practices running 24-hour emergency cover have a consumption profile that doesn’t drop overnight. ICU and high-dependency areas require continuous heating, lighting, and monitoring equipment. Oxygen supply systems, whether cylinder or concentrator-based, are a constant electrical draw. The building itself must be kept at clinical temperatures regardless of ambient conditions outside. A practice that presents to suppliers as a standard commercial premises — open 08:00 to 18:00, five days a week — and is priced accordingly will have a contract that doesn’t reflect its actual overnight demand.

VAT and CCL: the full rate applies

Veterinary practices don’t qualify for the 5% reduced rate of VAT on energy. Unlike charities (where qualifying non-business use attracts the lower rate) or certain residential settings, veterinary work is a commercial professional service, and 20% VAT applies across the board. This is sometimes confused with the position for human medical practices, where there can be more nuance around residential care elements. For veterinary, the position is straightforward: standard rate throughout.

The procurement angle: mixed-use profiles need submeter data

The complexity of a veterinary practice’s energy profile — autoclaves, HVAC, cold storage, 24-hour loads, grooming and boarding where applicable — makes it one of the most instructive sectors for demonstrating why procurement without data is procurement by guesswork. A practice with separate submeters for the surgical suite, the kennel block, and the main clinical building can go to tender with a granular picture of its consumption that supports accurate pricing. Without submeters, all of that complexity is compressed into a single meter read and priced as an undifferentiated lump.

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FAQ

We have an attached cattery that a family member runs as a separate business from the same premises. How does that affect our energy contract? If both operations are supplied from the same meter, the energy supplier sees one account and one consumption figure. The cattery’s consumption is bundled into the veterinary practice’s contract. The solution is submetering, which gives each operation its own consumption data and allows the energy cost to be recharged accurately. It also enables separate procurement if that makes commercial sense.

We’re looking at moving to a larger premises. Should we wait until after the move to review our energy contracts? No — review them now. If your current contracts are within their notice period, you can give notice and avoid auto-renewal onto a new term that you’ll then need to exit when you move. For the new premises, we can review the existing energy contracts, check who the incumbent supplier is, and advise on whether to transfer arrangements or go to market fresh.

Our practice uses a lot of injectables and inhalants that require strict cold storage. What does that mean for our energy resilience planning? Cold storage failure is a clinical risk as well as a financial one. A power outage that lasts more than two to four hours can result in significant stock loss. This makes the case for UPS on critical refrigeration circuits stronger than it would be for a comparable commercial operation. From an energy procurement perspective, it reinforces the argument for understanding your critical continuous loads and ensuring your contract and site infrastructure support them.