Irish state-owned electricity provider ESB has acquired a controlling 75% stake in rising energy supplier So Energy.
The So Energy brand will be retained and its 300,000 customers who will not be affected by the merger. Financial terms for the deal were not disclosed. Operational integration is expected to be completed by the year’s end.
ESB has operated in the UK since the 1990s, investing more than €2 billion in generation assets including wind and solar. It also provides switches and networks for EV charging in London, Coventry and Birmingham.
With the launch of ESB Energy in 2018, Ireland’s national provider entered UK power retailing, underpinned with a raft of green tariffs and related offerings. The ESB Energy brand will be withdrawn as a result of the merger.
Marguerite Sayers, ESB’s executive director for customer solutions, said: “The merger with So Energy is another significant milestone in our UK business, while further enhancing our customer offering and growth potential.
“So Energy’s customer centredness and commitment to a low-carbon future mirror our strategy. It is our intention to build on that success. We are really looking forward to integrating with and building a bright future with the So Energy team.”
Simon Oscroft and Charlie Davies, two former energy traders for Macquarie, founded So Energy in 2015 in Chiswick, west London, as a disruptive challenger brand in UK power retailing.
Oscroft said the merger will transform the firm into the “next big green energy supplier” in the UK.
He added: “By merging with ESB Energy, we are gaining access to experience, as well as resources we simply wouldn’t have been able to benefit from prior to today.”
