E.ON UK
| File:EON n UK RGB.PNG | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Energy |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Defunct | 8 September 2016  |
| Headquarters | Coventry, England |
Key people | Dr. Paul Golby (CEO) |
| Products | Power and gas |
Number of employees | 18,000 |
| Parent | E.ON |
| Website | www.eon-uk.com |
E.ON UK is an energy company in the United Kingdom and a subsidiary of E.ON, the world's largest investor-owned power and gas company. It was formed after the acquisition of Powergen plc by E.ON AG, in 2002.
It is a vertically integrated utility company with interests in electrical generation, electricity distribution in the Midlands region, and in the electricity and gas supply markets.
History
Powergen was formed in 1990 when the Central Electricity Generating Board was split into three generating companies (Powergen, National Power and Nuclear Electric plc) and electricity transmission company, National Grid Company.
Powergen became a Public Limited Company, wholly-owned by the UK government. In March 1991, 60% of Powergen was sold to private investors, followed by the remaining 40% in March 1995.
It expanded considerably by acquiring the regional electricity company East Midlands Electricity and the supply business of TXU Energi. Powergen was eventually taken over itself by E.ON, an acquisition which was completed in January 2002.
It then went on and bought the Distribution Network Operator Midlands Electricity in 2004. This was merged with the distribution business of East Midlands Electricity and rebranded as Central Networks. The entire company was renamed as E.ON UK on July 5th 2004.
The company's headquarters are in Coventry at Westwood Business Park, in a building designed by Bennetts Associates. There are numerous other offices and power generation sites across the country.
Price Variations
On 8th February 2008, E.ON became the latest UK Energy provider to increase it's costs - electricity by 15% and gas by 9.7%. However, a significant number of it's vulnerable customers are protected from price increases until 1st April 2008.[1]
In February 2007, E.ON announced price decreases for gas (16%) and electricity (5%), following increases the previous August (gas by 18.4% and electricity by 9.7%) and May (gas by 22.4% and electricity by 18.4%).[2]
E.ON accompanies price variations with new price plans, or products, which cap energy prices, or give online customers greater savings.
Businesses and brands
UK businesses
E.ON UK's businesses comprise of:
- Generation - branded E.ON
- Distribution - branded Central Networks
- Retail - branded E.ON
- Energy Services - branded Energy Services and Metering Services
- E.ON IS UK - the company's IT service provider (co-owned with German sister company E.ON IS GmbH) - branded E.ON IS
Other UK businesses
E.ON's other operations in the UK include:
- E.ON Climate and Renewables - renewables and climate protection projects
- E.ON Engineering - engineering and technology
- E.ON Ruhrgas UK North Sea - oil and gas exploration and production, within the UK sector of the North Sea
Brand evolution
In October 2005, "a company of E.ON" was added under the Powergen logo, communicating the relationship between Powergen and E.ON to the consumer marketplace.
In June 2007, a major advertising campaign entitled "The wind of change", containing advertisements using the E.ON logo, was launched. The campaign featured the Robin Rigg offshore wind farm in the Solway Firth, currently in development. In the consumer market, this was complimented by a replacement of the mostly blue Powergen identity to the red identity of E.ON, and the launch of a new product, Go Green, using electricity from renewable sources and carbon-offset gas.
On the 22 October 2007, the company announced that the E.ON Energy and Powergen brands would change to E.ON as of the 1 November and 3 December 2007 respectively. [3]
In February 2008 E.on announced that they intended to purchase the highway lighting and highway lighting PFI division of ABB.
Service
E.ON UK has recently made progress in improving the standard of service it offers to its retail customers. In 2005 the company was ranked by Energywatch as one of the UK's worst suppliers. However, by the end of 2006 they were ranked the UK's second best - a position which they have held on to since this date.
Sponsorship
Sport
In 2006, E.ON UK announced that it was to be the sponsor of the FA Cup for a four-year period. During this period, the competition is formally called "The FA Cup sponsored by E.ON". Prior to 2006, the company had sponsored the rugby union and rugby league cup competitions under the Powergen brand.
The company also sponsors Ipswich Town Football Club through the E.ON brand, a relationship which was originally within TXU Energi; it is the energy partner of the Football League; and sponsors the E.ON Lounge at the Ricoh Arena, the home of Coventry City Football Club.
In other sports, E.ON UK is also a sponsor of the Tour of Britain cycling championship, and has recently launched a campaign with Ellen MacArthur to encourage energy efficiency within businesses.
Other sponsorship activity
The company also sponsors the Royal Academy exhibition "From Russia: French and Russian Master Paintings 1870–1925 from Moscow and St Petersburg", which runs from January to April 2008.
References
- ^ "Details about our price change". E.ON. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- ^ "Powergen increases energy prices". The BBC. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- ^ "E.ON UK Press Releases, Powergen is changing to E.ON…". E.ON. Retrieved 2007-10-26.