How Energy Matrix Group strengthened contract governance with Gatekeeper

Energy Matrix Group (EMG) operates at the heart of complex energy markets in Australia, helping businesses manage how they buy, trade and manage energy. Its business spans gas and electricity supply and trading, energy retail, energy contract management and specialist energy advisory services.

As Energy Matrix Group (EMG) has grown, so have the number and complexity of the contracts underpinning its gas trading, retail and advisory businesses. Supply agreements, transport arrangements, customer contracts and vendor agreements all carry critical terms, obligations and dates that matter to the business. Recognising this, EMG set out to strengthen how it captures, tracks and governs its contracts, ultimately partnering with contract lifecycle management specialist Gatekeeper to build a system fit for the way EMG actually operates.

The challenge: Growing contract complexity in a regulated environment

Contract management had historically relied on a mix of shared drives, spreadsheets and institutional knowledge to track key terms and dates. That approach was manageable while the business was smaller, but it was more difficult to manage as EMG’s contract portfolio expanded across more counterparties, more markets and more contract types.

Two gaps stood out. First, contracts were stored across different departments, personnel and systems. As the number of contracts grew, key contractual terms weren’t consistently captured in one place. Second, and more pressing, EMG had no centralised, reliable way of flagging contractual milestones ahead of time. Renewal dates, notice periods and review triggers were tracked manually, creating a real risk that an important date could be missed.

EMG also wanted any new system to support a more robust, better documented onboarding and approvals process – one that reflected how decisions are actually made and signed off internally, at speed. With the number of contracts held by EMG expected to increase by 50% in 2026, having a reliable way to manage renewal notices and maintain a clear approval trail became increasingly important: a missed renewal notice or an ambiguous approval trail is not just an inconvenience, it is a compliance and commercial risk.

The search: Finding the right fit for complex requirements

Rather than settling for the first suitable product, EMG undertook an extensive review of the contract lifecycle management market, testing platforms against a detailed set of requirements built around EMG’s own contract types, approval structures and reporting needs. The evaluation process itself proved valuable, sharpening EMG’s understanding of exactly what “good” contract management should look like for a business of its size and complexity.

The solution: Bringing contracts, onboarding and approvals into one unified platform

Gatekeeper is the only unified Vendor and Contract Lifecycle Management solution, bringing Vendor Risk & Compliance, Contract Lifecycle Management, and Vendor Performance & Savings together in one connected platform. Built on that unified foundation, Gatekeeper AI turns data into answers and more than 50 specialist Gatekeeper Agents turn those answers into action across the vendor lifecycle.

What set Gatekeeper apart was its willingness to work closely with EMG to tailor the system to the business and also its integrated credit and cyber management and onboarding tool.

Gatekeeper’s team worked with EMG to configure a platform that onboards new third parties and captures key contractual terms at the point a contract is entered into, and automatically generates reminders ahead of critical milestones – including renewal dates, notice periods and review points – so decisions can be made with time to spare rather than under pressure.

The implementation also gave EMG the opportunity to improve its contract approvals process, incorporating Gatekeeper AI Agents into the workflow. Rather than adopting a generic approvals template, EMG worked with Gatekeeper to build a workflow that mirrors its existing internal sign-off structure, while making approvals more visible, consistent and better documented.

“What set Gatekeeper apart was its willingness to collaborate with EMG to configure the platform around how we actually work and what we need for future growth.” Allan McDougall, CEO, EMG

Results and impact: Greater visibility, stronger governance and less manual risk

Since going live, EMG has onboarded more than 300 customers and suppliers and is managing more than 900 contracts in Gatekeeper. Key outcomes include:

• A single source of truth for third parties and contracts – key commercial and legal terms across EMG’s contract portfolio are now captured consistently and can be searched and compared quickly, rather than requiring a manual review of individual documents.

• Proactive milestone management – automated reminders ahead of renewal dates and other contractual triggers mean EMG’s commercial teams can plan ahead, rather than reacting to deadlines as they arise.

• A documented, auditable onboarding and approvals chain – onboarding and contract approvals now follow a clear, recorded workflow that reflects how EMG actually makes decisions, strengthening both accountability and audit readiness.

• Reduced reliance on institutional knowledge – with terms and obligations captured in the system rather than held by individuals, EMG is less exposed to key-person risk as the business continues to grow.

“Our partnership with Gatekeeper means we now have complete visibility over our contractual obligations and milestones, and an approvals process that is efficient for our business.” Steve Bird, General Counsel, EMG

Strategic significance: Building governance that scales with the business

For a business managing an important share of Western Australia’s domestic gas market, and expanding into new markets and customer segments, disciplined contract governance is not a back-office nicety – it is core infrastructure. Missing a renewal date or losing sight of a key contractual obligation can carry real commercial and compliance consequences.

By partnering with Gatekeeper, EMG has put a scalable system in place that grows with the business, rather than one the business has to work around. Just as importantly, the new onboarding and approvals process has made governance more visible and more defensible, supporting EMG’s broader commitment to strong compliance and corporate governance as it continues to expand across west coast and east coast energy markets.

“Gatekeeper doesn’t just give us a system, it helped us build the right platform for our maturing business.” Allan McDougall, CEO, EMG