Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 12TH - 18TH APRIL 2019 | 17 Customers Renewable energy supplier Octo- pus Energy has announced it is reducing the cost of its standard variable tariff from 1 May as a result of falling wholesale costs. The challenger supplier says the cost of its Flexible Octopus tariff will decrease by about 3 per cent. Octopus Energy chief execu- tive Greg Jackson told Utility Week: "We're doing this because ENERGY Octopus announces drop in the price of its standard variable tariff falling wholesale costs enable us to pass on lower prices to customers. "We think that restoring trust in energy really requires this sort of action as soon as possible because so many customers perceive pricing as unfair." Ofgem's revised price cap came into effect on 1 April with an increase of £117 to £1,254. The energy regulator said rising wholesale costs were mostly to blame for the rise, yet since the cap was calculated, wholesale costs have decreased and experts are predicting the cap will fall later in the year. Two other challenger brands have also announced they are lowering their prices. Renewable energy supplier Bulb said in March it was cutting prices by an average of £20 a year, following This week Clear Business adopts Aquaflow customers Move marks the first time the regulator has used the 'interim supply process' in the market Ofwat has named Clear Business Water Ltd as the retailer that will take on the customers of failed company Aquaflow Utilities. The announcement on 9 April marks the first time the regula- tor has used the "interim supply process" in the non-household water retail market, which launched two years ago. Last month, news emerged that Aquaflow, which had around 74 business customers, was expected to enter liq- uidation and become the first player to exit the market. The company was granted its supplier licence on 4 January 2018. Ofwat's senior director of customers and casework, Emma Kelso, said: "Customers should be reassured that they now have a new retailer in place following the revocation of Aquaflow's licence. "This is the first time that we have had to use the interim supply process to protect customers, and while it is always difficult to see a company fail, not all retailers will thrive and it is possible that in the future, others will leave the market too." Chris Earle, chief executive of Verastar, the parent company of Clear Business, said: "It is saddening, although not unpredictable, to see the first water retailer in England enter the interim supplier allocation process. "Ofwat selected Clear Business based on the assur- ances we provided in ensuring the smooth transition of services for customers, supported by our extensive expe- rience of managing large-scale customer base transfers. "Despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding this, we are delighted to welcome affected customers to our business and will be contacting each of them directly over the coming days." AJ ENERGY Labrador switching service 'acquired' Energy auto-switching service Labrador has been acquired by another company, but founder Jane Lucy insists it is "business as usual" for customers. Details of the purchase are not being revealed yet, but an announcement is expected in the coming weeks. Lucy, who has been retained by the new owner, told Utility Week the company would have gone under had it not been acquired. She added that in the meantime it was "business as usual" for customers using the service, which has not gone offline. An official statement from administrators Carter Backer Winter LLP said the sale was completed on 5 April. It said: "Following a review of the financial position, the board of directors appointed Joseph Colley and John Dickinson of Carter Backer Winter LLP as joint administrators of the company on 25 March 2019. "A sale of the assets of the company completed on 5 April 2019 and we are pleased to say that Labrador has been acquired by a company that understands the true value of their technology. "The founder and technical team have been retained and full service remains and will continue to remain live, so customers need not worry." Prior to its so¤ launch in September 2017, Labrador raised around £1.2 million from more than 30 individual investors, and then raised a further £890,000 via crowdfunding platform Crowdcube in exchange for 13.57 per cent equity. ELECTRICITY IKEA suspends solar panel offer Furniture giant IKEA has suspended its solar panel offer, following the end of the feed-in tariff (FIT). In a statement, the company said it does "not feel that the majority of new home solar customers will get a good deal" and that the commercial offer is "unviable until the UK solar market landscape improves". The FIT scheme was a gov- ernment programme designed to promote the uptake of low- carbon electricity generation, which closed on 31 March. Applications for the scheme are no longer accepted, except for any remaining MCS certified systems installed before the 31 March deadline, which must apply within the next year. Having received an over- whelming volume of solar enquiries in anticipation of the closure, solar panel supplier Solarcentury announced via a statement on its website that all its booking slots were filled, and that the IKEA offer was under review. The government plans to replace the export tariff aspect of the FIT scheme with the "smart export guarantee" (SEG). Earle: delighted to welcome affected customers a fall in wholesale gas costs. It said the price drop means its single tariff is now £250 cheaper than standard plans offered by the big six and that its prices are now 12 per cent lower than they were in December 2018. Igloo Energy has cut prices by an average of 2.6 per cent. A typical customer on its single tariff can expect to see an annual decrease of £36.

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