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| AUGUST 2021 | UTILITY WEEK
Customers
Interview
"EVs are a huge
opportunity for suppliers
to reinvent themselves and
bring themselves closer to
something exciting."
Chris Russell,
MANAGING DIRECTOR, OVO DRIVE
E
lectric vehicles offer energy suppliers a chance to
step out of the shadows and have an entirely differ-
ent relationship with consumers, says the manag-
ing director of Ovo Drive, Chris Russell. And he believes
the winners in this expanding market will be companies
that can take the complexity away for the consumer.
"I think EVs are a huge opportunity for suppliers
to reinvent themselves and bring themselves closer to
something that is frankly exciting and more of a visible
day to day asset," he says.
Simplifying Ovo's electric vehicle (EV) proposition
for consumers is the name of the game for Russell, who
took up his role as head of the supplier's new dedicated
EV division earlier this year.
Russell co-founded Tonik Energy in 2015 and the
challenger brand had acquired around 130,000 custom-
ers before it ceased trading in October last year.
Ovo has established itself as one of the largest players
in the market since launching in 2009. AŒer its acquisi-
tion of the retail arm of SSE in 2019 the group serves
almost five million customers and employs 7,300 staff.
A core aspect of the business is Kaluza, an energy
platform that introduces flexibility into the energy sys-
tem by optimising individual devices, including smart
EV charging.
The latest figures from the Society of Motor Manu-
facturers and Traders show plug-in electric vehicles
accounted for almost 14 per cent of new car registrations
so far this year. For comparison, 2020 was the best-ever
year for electric cars, with battery and plug-in-hybrid
vehicles having a 10.7 per cent market share.
For his part, Russell believes in ensuring a simple
consumer proposition, which he hopes to achieve with
Ovo Drive and its new tariff Drive Anytime.
