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5 years ago
Eon UK chief executive Michael Lewis tells Utility Week that energy retailers should look at how the water sector is dealing with bad debt during the coronavirus pandemic. He insists that if the situation escalates, the energy retail sector “should not have to bear the risk of the non-collection of costs that suppliers collect on behalf of other parts of the industry”.
Greg Jackson has expressed disappointment that large suppliers are resorting to “traditional energy industry infighting” instead of coming together to help the most vulnerable customers. The Octopus Energy chief executive said he had proposed a standardised form for assisting vulnerable customers but it had not been adopted by the wider sector.
Yu Energy has become the second supplier in the space of a week to offer two months’ worth of free power to customers. The pan-utilities business supplier said the move had been made to support firms hit by coronavirus.
Our Keeping Us Connected campaign is showcasing how the utilities sector is responding to the coronavirus pandemic. Here we take a look at how Scottish Power Energy Networks is supporting some of its most vulnerable customers, as well as keeping young children occupied during lockdown.
Greg Jackson, chief executive of Octopus Energy, believes a six to 12 month delay may give the industry sufficient time to resolve connectivity issues. He said the delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic will not be as long as those resulting from technology issues in the programme's early days.
Matthew Vickers, chief executive at the Energy Ombudsman, tells Utility Week about the effects the virus has had on the service and about the worries over how SMEs are being affected with little protection. He does however remain optimistic that the lessons learned from the sector's response to the pandemic will be a key tool to achieving the 2050 net zero target.
