Énergir

SAP S/4HANA on Microsoft Azure Cloud, a major digital transformation within the company

Today, everything is working perfectly. oXya has demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt, adjust and feel at ease with the various partners throughout the process.
Charles Brenn, Vice President, Information Technologies, Énergir

Challenge

Move from an SAP ECC environment to next generation SAP S/4HANA on Microsoft Azure – a major digital transformation within the company.

Solution

Configure a hosted zone on Microsoft Azure and deploy the virtual machines for SAP using the Infrastructure as Code (IaC) methodology and carry out the SAP migration while meeting the multiple technical requirements of the major project.

Outcome

Énergir significantly improved its operational performance and has a solid technological infrastructure to accelerate its digital transformation to equip it to meet its new challenges.

Transforming to Build the Future

Québec is looking to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and Énergir is already in action. In 2020, the company laid the foundations for the years ahead by transforming their business model. Their Vision 2030-2050 includes concrete measures to ensure they remain a relevant key player in addressing climate, economic and social challenges for our customers and Québec. Énergir aims to achieve net zero emissions for the energy distributed by 2050.

The company’s activities are diversifying and intensifying, as consumer demand for renewable energies continues to grow. Yet, another major transformation was about to get underway: the technological infrastructure.

SAP Migration to the Cloud: Turning A Need into An Opportunity

While SAP had initially announced the end-of-life of SAP ECC for 2025, questions were already springing up within Énergir’s IT team. How would the conversion from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA be performed? What would happen to the SAP infrastructures? After initiating an assessment process, the latter was called into question when SAP extended the SAP ECC maintenance end date.

At the same time, other discussions were simultaneously emerging, focusing on the company’s Vision 2030-2050. Then, the questions gave way to the obvious: in order to give themselves the means to achieve their ambitions, digital transformation with SAP became a must. From then on, it became a priority corporate project.

A large-scale project where collaboration is essential

Moving from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA is a major challenge for any company. Although several proposals were put on the table during the tender process, finding the ideal solution and the right partners was crucial for Énergir.

That’s when the name oXya came up. oXya was able to stand out and convince Énergir of its expertise, particularly by proposing a coherent approach with project completion within a very tight timeframe. This marked the start of a new collaboration between Énergir and oXya, as well as with Accenture Canada and Microsoft Azure, the hosting partner.

The chosen solution was to make a technological leap from SAP ECC to the next-generation SAP S/4HANA and migrate to the cloud with Microsoft Azure. Responsible for the technical aspect of the project, oXya played a key role in configuring the hosted zone on Microsoft Azure and deploying the virtual machines (servers) for SAP by using a DevOps methodology with Infrastructure as Code (IaC).

This IT project launched in June 2021 was among the most important for Énergir in terms of its digital transformation.

Énergir

SECTOR

Distribution of natural gas and renewable energies

DESCRIPTION

1,600 employees in Québec
Owner of 9 subsidiaries in Québec and Canada and 2 subsidiaries in the United States (Vermont)
More than CAD 9 billion in assets

SAP SOLUTIONS

SAP S/4HANA, SAP BW, SAP GRC, SAP IDM, SAP ADS, SAP Solution Manager

DATABASE

SAP HANA Platform Edition 2.0 on Microsoft Azure Cloud

Benefits

Greater operational efficiency
Improved cybersecurity posture
Reduce total cost of ownership

A Major Migration Completed on Schedule

Given the complex nature of this project, one single delay can quickly have a domino effect. Data transformation from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA represents a critical phase preceding the functional transformation. The oXya team has managed to complete every phase of the project on time and on budget, while responding effectively to the various challenges.

Within a few weeks, we had operational SAP environments up and running. Everyone was pleasantly surprised at the speed with which we were able to kick off our configuration work; we rarely see projects that run so smoothly. Our partner oXya made a big difference to the success of this project.

Charles Brenn, Vice President, Information Technologies, Énergir

The migration to SAP S/4HANA on the cloud with Azure has enabled Énergir to modernize and improve its operational performance, particularly through the automation of various processes linked to finance and customer service. Thanks to oXya’s assistance, Énergir has also been able to significantly improve its cybersecurity posture by adopting best practices.

A Successful Collaboration That Continues to Yield Positive Outcomes

From the outset, the project was positioned as a team effort, and everything was put in place to ensure that the project structure satisfied each of the project partners. Internal and external teams have learned to band together and make the most of each other’s expertise.

Once the migration was completed in spring 2022, Énergir has chosen to continue and extend its collaboration with oXya by opting for oXya Managed Services. This allows oXya to continue offering its SAP expertise to Énergir over the long term, with a dedicated team based in Montréal. This service provides Énergir with a solid partner for operational maintenance, with 24/7 supervision and proactive work on its SAP application suite on Microsoft Azure.

With the new SAP environment, now supported by oXya, Énergir gains in efficiency. This considerable gain means that it now has all the tools at hand to help it achieve its decarbonization objectives.

About Énergir, a Key Player in The Energy Transition
Énergir is a diversified energy company whose mission is to meet the increasingly sustainable energy needs of its 540,000 customers and the communities it serves in Québec. Énergir is striving to become the sought after and valued partner by all those who aspire to a better energy future.