Pooled Energy resurrected by Intellihub acquisition
Leading Australian and New Zealand smart metering and energy data specialists the Intellihub Group has acquired the assets of Australia’s first digital pool management and monitoring business, Pooled Energy.
As well as remotely monitoring and servicing backyard pools, and supplying pool equipment, Pooled Energy (now rebranded as Pooled) also operated as an electricity retailer.
This finished in May 2022 when the business was placed in administration after a 10-fold increase to wholesale electricity prices. Its electricity customers were transferred to other retailers and its retail licence was suspended.
At its peak, Pooled Energy serviced approximately 1600 customers mainly in Sydney and the Central Coast before its assets were acquired by the Intellihub Group.
The newly rebranded Pooled business will not operate as an electricity retailer. The business was rebranded to reflect its new focus on pool monitoring and management without an energy retailing component.
Pooled will install sensors and smart controllers to pool equipment to automate the management and monitoring of backyard swimming pools. Intellihub plans to get a new version of the Pooled software up and running, and expand into other states of Australia.
App-based management
Customers manage their pools via simple directions from an app, while a unique blend of chemicals is sent directly to the owner to add to the pool once or twice a year.
Intellihub CEO Wes Ballantine says the service is focused on delivering clean pools and clear, healthy water while reducing energy consumption and pool energy costs.
Ballantine says the Pooled technology was a great match for Intellihub, which specialises in smart meter technology and behind-the-meter data management.
“Many Australians dream of owning their own pool,” he says. “But when they finally do, many of them discover it’s complicated, time consuming and costly to keep clean, healthy and looking good.
“The team at Pooled saw the opportunity to help pool owners save time and cut costs – and better manage their pool. They had the technology to do this.
“We see that potential too. Intellihub can provide the resources and know-how to help make their technology even smarter and more reliable for their customers.”
He says Intellihub has plans to significantly grow the business and open new opportunities to control and manage the large electrical load from pools.
“We’re targeting an extra 20,000 new customers over the next two to three years and expansion outside New South Wales, particularly in states like Queensland and Victoria,” he says.
“There are more than 1.3 million pool owners in Australia, and we believe Pooled can help better manage their pools.”
Restoring service
Intellihub has now completed a transaction to purchase Pooled’s remaining assets and has been working closely with the Pooled team to restore its pool management and monitoring services to its pre-existing customers.
Intellihub will also explore new opportunities to work with pool owners, electricity retailers and its partners to efficiently manage the high electrical load from pools, such as solar, batteries, water heating and electric vehicle charging.
“It would take all the energy from our largest electricity generator to power the 1.3 million pools in Australia – that’s around 3 gigawatts of electricity,” says Ballantine.
“That consumer load is a resource that can help make the electricity system more secure and more reliable. But you need a way to register, control and manage these devices.
“We think we can help with that.”
Intellihub manages and operates more than 1.6 million smart meters across Australia and New Zealand on behalf of electricity retailers.
Intellihub recently partnered with leading energy technology company GreenSync, which developed the cloud based DER (distributed energy resources) interoperability software known as deX – or decentralised energy exchange.
Intellihub was also recently awarded funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to roll out 50 street-side electric vehicle chargers under a trial targeting EV owners without off street parking.
Image: Intellihub CEO Wes Ballantine
