As rumours and speculations have mounted in the past few weeks around Bulb’s sale, the Business Secretary has given an update on the process.

Kwasi Kwarteng told the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy select committee that the energy supplier’s administrators, Teneo and the government seek to conclude a deal “as quickly as possible”.

He said: “We have a number of parties interested in acquiring the business, those conversations are ongoing and Lazard are the financial advisors.”

A few days ago, it was reported that British Gas owner pulled out of the auction to acquire energy supplier Bulb, leaving two potential bidders, Octopus Energy and Masdar.

MPs said that according to the latest administrator’s report Bulb is a loss-making business with £1.5 billion of costs compared to £1.1 billion pounds of income from billpayers.

Asked how that cost will be recovered, the Business Secretary said: “We don’t know what the actual deal will be, we don’t know what the consideration will be and that’s what we are negotiating.

“To say that there is a presumption that consumers will pay, I think is not right. We are in negotiations as we speak about what price they are going to pay and so if I were to say such and such a loss and deficit would be guaranteed by such and such, that would affect the commercial negotiation.”