News / Energy
Bristol-founded energy giant sold to rival firm
The Bristol-founded energy firm, OVO, has agreed to sell its retail arm to the rival firm E.ON in a multimillion-pound deal, subject to regulatory approval.
It is end of an era for the Bristol company which once dominated the energy market as the second largest energy supplier in the UK.
Founded in 2009 by Stephen Fitzpatrick as a challenger company to “Big Six”, OVO, in 2020 bought the retail arm of SSE in a £500m deal that made it Britain’s second largest supplier.
OVO, which traded for many years from River Gate, near Bristol Temple Meads, moved to new premises at Crescent building at Temple Back recently as one of its first occupants.
OVO traded for many years from River Gate, near Bristol Temple Meads before moving to Temple Back – photo: Milan Perera
The company, which positioned itself as a green energy champion, has 4m customers in its books.
In 2020, it won Company of the Decade at the BusinessGreen Leaders’ Awards for its efforts in decarbonisation.
The deal, which is reportedly worth £600m, will create a combined customer base of 9.6m households for the German firm E.ON and challenge Octopus for the top spot in the leaderboard.
For OVO, the sale follows a difficult period marked by financial pressure and stricter resilience requirements introduced by energy regulator Ofgem after the collapse of multiple suppliers during the energy crisis.
OVO founder Stephen Fitzpatrick said the energy retail market had become “more regulated, more capital intensive and increasingly dependent on long-term investment and scale”, making the deal “the right next step”.
He said: “Sixteen years ago I started OVO with a simple belief: energy should be cheaper, greener and simpler and it should work for customers.
“That belief built one of the country’s largest energy companies and pioneered a completely new customer centric approach. The team has consistently pushed the rest of the industry to raise its game and I am genuinely proud of what we have built.
OVO was founded in 2009 by Stephen Fitzpatrick as a challenger company to “Big Six” – photo: OVO
“Energy retail is now more regulated, more capital intensive and increasingly dependent on long-term investment and scale.
“In that context, bringing OVO together with E.ON is the right next step for customers, for colleagues and for the long-term commitment that decarbonisation requires.”
Until the approval process completes, which is expected later this year, OVO and E.ON will continue to operate separately with no immediate changes for the customers.
OVO will also sell its home services arm to Hometree, while retaining Kaluza, its technology platform focused on energy flexibility and customer management software.
OVO has its current headquarters in Crescent building on Temple Back – photo: Milan Perera
Fitzpatrick is also the founder of the Bristol-based air taxi venture Vertical Aerospace, which recently secured a $850m funding package for its next stage.
Main photo: OVO
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