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)
- 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:- Go to Data Inventory → Bills
- Open a bill’s detail view
- Look at the Line Items section to see charges and their meter assignments
- Go to Sites and select a site
- Use Inspect Aggregation to see which bills contribute to each month’s costs
Account-level charges
Some charges on a bill aren’t tied to specific meters:| Charge type | How it’s allocated |
|---|---|
| Customer charge | Split equally among all meters |
| Paper billing fee | Split equally among all meters |
| Energy charge | Split by usage proportion |
| Demand charge | Assigned 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