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Social supplier Brighter World Energy has closed down, saying its business model was unsustainable due to market conditions.

The company’s customers have been taken on by its partner Robin Hood Energy – the council-owned supplier which provided the white label tariffs it offered.

In a statement posted on its website, Brighter World Energy co-founder and chief executive Cheryl Latham, said: “We have taken the tough, but responsible, decision to close at this time, because we no longer believe that market conditions, or our underlying operation, make for a sustainable business model in the long term.”

Latham assured customers their supplies will not be interrupted and will continue to be provided on the same terms as before. She said any customer wishing to leave Robin Hood Energy will be able to do so without incurring exit fees, regardless of whether they are included in their current tariff.

Brighter World Energy was launched in October 2016 as a “buy-to-give” ethical supplier, promising to install a solar-powered micro-grid in an African village for every 2,000 customers it signed up.

“All that remains for me to do is to sincerely thank you for choosing Brighter World as your energy provider,” Latham concluded.

“As a small, disruptive start-up, we set out on an ambitious mission to make energy fairer for everyone, and we have always worked with integrity and determination at the heart of that mission.”

She said the supplier’s remaining funds have been donated to its charity partner Renewable World so they can install solar panels at a women’s fishing cooperative on the shores of Lake Victoria.