Energy Supply Company launched by Nottingham City Council - Robin Hood Energy

Nottingham City Council has today (Monday 7 September 2015) launched Robin Hood Energy, the first local authority-owned not-for-profit energy supply company since nationalisation of Great Britain’s electricity supply industry in 1948.

The ground-breaking move is driven by the council’s commitment to provide affordable energy to customers and to help tackle fuel poverty.

As a fully licensed national energy supplier, tariffs are available to customers in England, Wales and Scotland.

The need for cheaper energy is backed up by recent criticism of the energy market by the competitions watchdog – the Competitions and Markets Authority. It recognised that greater competition in the market place could help reduce energy bills.

Robin Hood Energy is a not-for-profit energy supply company owned by Nottingham City Council. Its directors – who are not paid a salary – and other employees don’t receive bonuses and it has few overheads which help maintain low tariffs for customers.

It is forecasted that customers who have already switched to Robin Hood Energy (during the controlled market entry phase) from their existing providers could save on average up to £237 per annum on their annual energy bills.

Nottingham City residents can take advantage of a unique ‘Nottingham tariff’ which is only available to customers in the City of Nottingham. It is one of Robin Hood Energy’s three core tariffs which are:

• Evergreen (standard variable)
• Prime (one year fixed-term)
• Nottingham (for Nottingham city residents only).

Customers can check which tariffs are appropriate to them by entering their postcode into the ‘quote portal’ on the website.

Cllr Alan Clark, Nottingham City Council’s portfolio holder for Energy and Sustainability, says: “The UK’s domestic energy market has been hit with fluctuating Government policies and subsidy cutbacks. In recent years, the cost of utility bills has spiralled as the profit-hungry ‘Big six’ energy companies have exploited their monopoly. We have decided to take the bold step of setting up Robin Hood Energy so that energy can be provided to customers across Nottingham and beyond at the lowest possible price, run not-for-profit but for people.”

Robin Hood Energy has been subject to rigorous and complex industry accreditation procedures that will guarantee the company is compliant with energy market regulations. Nottingham City Council has created an arms-length organisation bringing together a team of energy industry experts and service providers who have experience in creating and running energy companies.