Who owns whom in the energy sector?
For households and businesses across the UK to be able to power their premises and homes electricity needs to be generated, transported, and finally sold to the customer.
‘Energy companies can work in any of these different areas, and some operate in all of three of them,’ Energy UK explains. They also add that ‘the electricity and gas markets in the UK are privatised, which means that customers can choose which companies supply their energy.’
The fact that the market is privatised also means that there are many different energy companies in the UK. Knowing who owns whom can help us understand how the sector works.
Here we take a look at the structure and ownership of some of the UK’s biggest suppliers.
Octopus Energy was established in 2015 and has grown significantly since then. On top of the structure there is Octopus Energy Holdco Ltd. It owns Octopus Energy Group Ltd, under which fall:
- Octopus Electric Vehicles Ltd
- Octopus Energy Equality Foundation
- Octopus Energy Generation Holdco Ltd
- Octopus Energy Hatchery Ltd
- Octopus Energy Heating Ltd.
Then, Octopus Energy Generation Holdco Ltd also has several subsidiaries, namely Octopus Energy Generation No1, Octopus Energy Generation No1, and Octopus Renewables Ltd.
Scottish Power Ltd is owned by the Spanish Iberdola Sa. Scottish Power UK Plc is a subsidiary of Scottish Power Ltd. It owns Scottish Power Retail Holdings Ltd, which owns the following companies:
- Scottish Power Energy Management Ltd
- Scottish Power Energy Retail Ltd
- Scottish Power Generation Ltd
- Scottish Power Dataserve Ltd
- Scottish Power Gas Transportation Cockenzie Ltd
- Scottish Power Retail Holdings Ltd.
British Gas is the largest UK supplier and it is also said to be the greenest one. On top of the ownership structure of British Gas there is Centrica Plc, which owns Centrica Holdings Ltd. Then, Centrica Holdings Ltd controls GB Gas Holdings Ltd. And finally, there is British Gas Ltd.
SSE is the second largest supplier in Scotland. SSE Plc owns 36 companies but the main ones are OVO Retail Telecoms Ltd, OVO Gas Ltd, OVO Electricity Ltd, OVO Energy Services Ltd.
EDF Energy belongs to the EDF Group, which brings together several gas and electricity companies. EDF Energy is owned by Électricité de France. But it also controls several companies itself. These include:
- EDF Energy Holdings Ltd
- EDF Energy Renewables Ltd
- EDF Energy Investments Ltd
- EDF Energy South Eastern Services Ltd.
EDF Renewables Ltd is the main subsidiary of EDF Energy. It works to promote sustainability and encourage people to be greener and more energy-efficient.
E. ON is a renewable gas and electricity supplier owned by E. ON Germany. In November 2019, E. ON took over npower and became the largest supplier of renewable renewable electricity in the UK. E.ON provides energy to around 3.8 million customers in the UK.
Gazprom is one of the UK’s leading suppliers working with business customers. Gazprom Ltd is a subsidiary of OOO Gazprom Capital based in Russia but its parent company is Gazprom Marketing & Trading Limited.
Haven Power specialises in supplying renewable electricity to businesses around the UK. The supplier is a part of the Drax Group, a power generation company based in the UK. Drax Group acquired Haven Power in 2009. On top of the ownership structure of Haven Power there is Drax Group Holdings Ltd, which owns Drax Corporate Ltd and Drax Smart Supply Holdco Ltd. The former, so Drax Corporate Ltd owns Drax Power Ltd, which controls Haven Power Ltd. But, it is worth noting that Drax Smart Supply Holdco Ltd also owns Haven Power Ltd.
Just like Haven Power, Opus Energy is part of DraxGroup. The supplier is committed to helping customers be more sustainable. Opus Energy Ltd is directly controlled by Opus Energy Group Ltd. This one, on the other hand, is owned by Drax Smart Supply Holdco Ltd, Drax Group Holdings Ltd.
ENGIE, owning and operating 12 power stations, is an important electricity generator in the UK. ENGIE Energy UK belongs to the ENGIE Group. Engie SA, located on top of the ownership structure, is a French electric utility company. The main subsidiaries of ENGIE are:
- GrDF (Gaz réseau distribution France), responsible for distributing gas
- ENGIE Cofely, focused on environment and sustainability
- ENGIE IT (Engie Information & Technologies), charged with including IT in energy transition.
ENGIE moved its domestic customers to Octopus Energy and now it works solely with business ones.
Utilita is the first and only Pay as You Go supplier in the UK. Thanks to the company’s approach, customers pay only for energy they actually consume. Utilita is one of the biggest suppliers in the UK, coming right after the Big 6. It specialises in smart prepayment meters. The parent company of Utilita is Utilita Group Limited. Utilita also has two subsidiaries of its own, which are Hoga Ltd and Utilita Gas Ltd.
Avanti Gas is not only one of the UK’s leading suppliers of LPG but also an important shipper of natural gas. Avanti Gas is a part of UGI International, which is a Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) supplier. In addition to Avanti Gas, UGI International controls the following companies:
- AmeriGas – serving all 50 US states
- AntarGas – supplying gas to customers in Belgium.
‘We are part of UGI Corporation, a holding company that, through subsidiaries, distributes, stores, transports and markets energy products and related services,’ explains the website of AvantiGas.
Yü Energy, formerly known as Better Business Energy, is a supplier known for its customer-first approach. Yü Group PLC is owned by Bobby Kalar, who founded the company. The brand Yü Energy is the trading name of Yü Group PLC.
Yü Group PLC, which supplies energy to small and medium-sized (SME) enterprises and businesses around the United Kingdom, has two subsidiaries, which are:
- Kensington Power Limited, responsible for trading electricity
- KAL Energy Limited, which is a holding company.
Crown Gas & Power is a commercial energy supplier with more than 20 decades of experience supplying energy to customers in the UK. Crown Gas & Power is the UK’s leading supplier of fuels and lubricants. Crown Oil Ltd also owns Crown Oil Environmental (C.O.E), which helps businesses reduce their impact on the environment and overcome environmental hazards caused by fuels.
In addition to these two mains subsidiaries, Crown Oil Ltd also controls the following companies:
- Speedy Fuels
- Beesley Fuels
- Cooke Fuels
- Birlem Oil
- Ingoe Oils
- Crown Energy
- Star Oil.
Valda Energy is a UK electricity and gas supplier working with small and medium-sized businesses. Valda Energy is owned by Axpo UK. Valda Energy is a trading name of Valda Energy Group Limited.