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EDF Energy’s claim for £4.5 million of additional costs in taking on Solarplicity’s customers through the Supplier of Last Resort (SOLR) process looks set to be accepted by the energy regulator.
Ofgem has said it is minded to accept all of EDF’s claim, which relates to the process begun last August to transfer the 7,500 domestic and 500 business customers still served by Solarplicity Supply when it ceased trading.
EDF is seeking to recover £3.3 million in credit balances repaid to date to ex-customers of Solarplicity. Ofgem said the company also anticipates a further £371,000 of credit balances will need to be paid. The final decision in November will take into account the total figure. It will also be made subject to the outcome of the ongoing Solarplicity liquidation process, which may allow EDF to recover some of the claimed amount.
Ofgem said it was satisfied that EDF’s methodology for calculating the costs was sound and pointed out that the company had stated on its appointment that it would be claiming for additional expenditure.
Solarplicity exited the market in August 2018 – two months after selling the majority of its customers to Toto Energy, which also collapsed in October of that year, with EDF once again the appointed SOLR.
At the time it ceased trading, Solarplicity was subject to a provisional order from Ofgem over its failure to make Feed-in Tariff payments to generators.
In May 2019, the regulator had lifted a previous order that prevented the company from taking on new customers due to concerns over its service. Solarplicity chief executive David Elbourne later claimed the order undermined a rescue plan for the business and contributed towards its demise.
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