coronavirus

Time to act on Covid-related energy debt

Ofwat unveils next steps for water retail protections

Non-domestic water retailers will not face market performance charge penalties until the end of the financial year due to lockdown conditions, however operator charges will remain and temporary vacancy flags will not be reinstated.

BEIS and Scottish government clash over smart installs

Who can hold their breath longest?

Covid sees smart installs drop by 27% in 2020

Pandemic had ‘minimal effect’ on switching in 2020

Smart meter rollout to continue in third national lockdown

Retaining utility customers in a recessionary environment

With tech giants like Google entering the utility space, suppliers need to rethink their current business models in order to retain customers. This is the view of Andrew Field, of digital performance specialist, Teleperformance. He believes retailers must integrate competitors’ services alongside their own and harness technology to appeal to the modern consumer – one who is conscious of and takes an active interest in personal energy consumption. But what else can utility companies do to remain relevant?

Report estimates Covid’s RORE cost and PCC impact

Business Stream prepares backstop against coronavirus losses

Scottish Water has made financial support of up to £88 million available to Business Stream to mitigate the impact of coronavirus. It comes as the water retailer reported an operational loss of £14 million for 2019/20, down from a profit of £0.3 million the previous year.

Sharp rise in water retailer complaints

Despite efforts to protect non-household water customers from bills during lockdown a sharp rise in complaints to the watchdog over the summer shows many businesses were unhappy with the service from their retailer

Octopus joins mass Covid testing pilot

Covid is a catalyst for digital transformation

Supply chain predicts revenue downturn for next year

The impact of lockdown is expected to still be felt by members of the supply chain into 2021, according to a British Water survey that shows a third of companies anticipate revenues to be reduced in the next six to 12 months

SVT accelerates green recovery spending

Listed company Severn Trent reported a revenue fall of around £30 million because of the pandemic in the first six months of AMP7. It is accelerating opex projects including waste to energy to aid with the country's green recovery.