Market

Blockchain tools, smart data and increasingly savvy consumers are impacting the market

The EU has approved Shell’s plans to buy independent energy supplier Impello. The supplier services household customers in the UK and Germany, active under the brand First Utility. The approval means Shell will be able to enter the UK’s domestic energy market. Among other markets, Shell has activities in the trading and wholesale supply of […]

  More than a tenth of people say they have found it harder to ‘break up’ with their energy supplier than end a romance. That’s according to a survey from comparethemarket.com, which asked 2,000 adults about the dynamics of their energy tariff relationships. The research also found around 40% of Brits have been with their […]

National Grid is seeking views on its plans for its new, legally separate company to carry out electricity system operator (ESO) functions over the next year. It has produced a draft Forward Plan following “extensive” customer and stakeholder engagement throughout 2017/18. The grid operator says the consultation sets out how it proposes to “meet the […]

Switching in the non-household retail water market has continued at a steady rate this quarter, with 30,649 switches being made in the last three months. That’s according to a new nine-month update report from Market Operator Services Limited (MOSL), which manages the new market in England. The statistics show this brings the number of switches […]

Falling oil prices continued to impact UK oilfield services (OFS) in 2016, with the sector’s turnover falling by 15.5%. That’s the suggestion from consultancy EY, which warns the industry’s approach to recovery in 2018 could prove critical for long-term success. The report shows turnover declined from £35.7 billion in 2015 to £30.2 billion the following […]

The UK must continue to participate in the EU’s energy market to ensure the efficient trade of gas and electricity, maintain affordable security of supply and deliver its climate change targets. That’s according to Energy UK, which has outlined what it believes are the key issues for the energy sector to be discussed in the […]

The US is poised to become the world’s biggest oil producer, overtaking Russia and Saudi Arabia. That’s the prediction from research firm Rystad Energy, which suggests increased shale oil output from fracking could ramp up US domestic crude production by as much as a tenth in 2018. It says this would bring the nation’s total […]

The UK Government has opened a consultation on changing the regulations for private rent landlords’ minimum energy efficiency standards. The regulations will govern how 300,000 privately rented homes currently below the minimum energy efficiency standards will be brought up to standard. Landlords will have to pay for improved insulation and other efficiency features such as […]

A series of disruptions to the gas market last week could threaten the wave of smaller energy suppliers across the UK. Media reports suggest gas prices for this winter’s coldest months remain a third higher than the same time last year. Toto Energy, a relatively recent entrant to the market, has announced a 50% price […]