Skip to main content
Need help in this area? See Methodology FAQ.
Many utility bills cover multiple meters or service points on a single invoice. To show you accurate costs per meter and per site, Nectar allocates charges based on usage.

​
When cost allocation is needed

Cost allocation applies when:
  • A bill covers multiple meters — for example, one invoice for three electricity meters
  • A bill covers different utilities — for example, combined electric and gas billing
  • Account-level charges — charges like “customer fees” that aren’t tied to a specific meter

​
How it works

​
Usage-based allocation

When a charge applies to multiple meters of the same type, Nectar splits the cost based on each meter’s share of usage: Example: A $1,000 electricity charge covers two meters:
  • Meter A used 6,000 kWh (60% of total)
  • Meter B used 4,000 kWh (40% of total)
Result:
  • Meter A is allocated $600
  • Meter B is allocated $400

​
Equal allocation

When a charge can’t be split by usage (like a fixed customer charge), it’s divided equally among all meters on the account.

​
Seeing the allocation

To see how costs were allocated for any bill:
  1. Go to Data Inventory → Bills
  2. Open a bill’s detail view
  3. Look at the Line Items section to see charges and their meter assignments
To see how costs roll up to monthly totals:
  1. Go to Sites and select a site
  2. Use Inspect Aggregation to see which bills contribute to each month’s costs
Related docs: Bills overview, Bill detail, Sites overview

​
Account-level charges

Some charges on a bill aren’t tied to specific meters:
Charge typeHow it’s allocated
Customer chargeSplit equally among all meters
Paper billing feeSplit equally among all meters
Energy chargeSplit by usage proportion
Demand chargeAssigned to the demand meter

​
Currencies

Nectar keeps costs in their original currency. If your portfolio spans multiple countries with different currencies, you’ll see separate totals for each currency. This avoids inaccuracies from fluctuating exchange rates.

​
Good to know

​
New charges vs. total charges

Nectar uses new charges (this period’s costs only) for allocation and analytics — not the total amount due. This avoids double-counting when a previous balance is carried forward.

​
Demand charges

Demand charges (based on peak electricity usage in kW) are allocated specifically to demand meters, not spread across all electricity meters.

​
You can adjust allocations

If automatic allocation doesn’t match your needs, you can manually assign line items to specific meters in the bill detail view.

​
Next steps

Special situations

Revised bills, solar credits, and other complexities

Glossary

Look up terms like demand charge and line items