Company strategy

Jo Johnson quits as BEIS minister and MP

National Grid files winding up petition against Eversmart Energy

The Manchester-based supplier was previously revealed to have failed to pay its renewables obligation (RO) to Ofgem on time. Eversmart confirmed in April that it had paid off what it owed in installments to the regulator.

Will the disruptors be disrupted?

Much has been written about the impact of mid-tier challengers such as Ovo, Octopus and Bulb on the established players’ market dominance. But how sustainable are these disruptors, especially if wholesale prices rise sharply? Utility Week gets the views of experts, including Paul Massara.

Orsted exits SME market

Renewable energy supplier Orsted is to stop selling its services to small businesses, with immediate effect. The company talks to Utility Week about the business strategy behind the decision.

ESC helps grow five smart heating innovators

‘In-house disruptors’ needed to decarbonise heating

A Heat-as-a-Service (HaaS) model could be a key driver in the decarbonisation push but a lack of appetite from consumers for longer contracts may slow progress, an analyst has suggested. Research from Delta-EE showed consumers were reluctant to commit to a deal longer than two to three years and that a disruptor was needed in this area.

UU launches biggest ever water safety campaign

Northern Powergrid becomes final DNO to appoint CEG chair

Northern Powergrid has appointed the chair of its independent customer engagement group. The incoming chair has years of experience working on boards in a variety of sectors.

Construction begins on Scotland’s ‘first subsidy free’ onshore windfarm

Crossdykes windfarm, located in Dumfries and Galloway, is expected to be the UK's first subsidy free onshore windfarm when it is completed in September next year. However, its backers have called for onshore wind projects to be included in the Contracts for Difference scheme, to unlock more "challenging sites".

Closing the execution gap is key to building trust

Last month’s power cut highlighted just how fragile consumer trust is and how a single incident can set it back. Matthew Vickers, chief executive of the Energy Ombudsman, discusses lessons from the incident and how a quick and effective response can help to rebuild broken trust.

EDF shown in ‘credit default’

Big six supplier EDF energy was shown as being in credit default in the early hours of Saturday morning. EDF has since confirmed that the default was caused by an "administrative issue" which has since been resolved.

Breaking Ground: £300m Severn Trent resilience scheme; £8m Northumbrian Water anti-flood protection and other projects

From the £300 million Birmingham Resilience Scheme to the £8 million flooding reduction scheme, Utility Week takes a look at some of the interesting and innovative projects taking place across the sector.

Can utilities create a data democracy?

Is the idea of presumed open data a bridge too far for utilities? Jane Gray reports on a debate between leading industry figures, sparked by recommendations from the Energy Data Taskforce.

How utilities providers can reach and engage with vulnerable customers

The smart meter rollout – now comes the hard part