Municipal energy companies

In 2015, Nottingham City Council launched the Robin Hood Energy (RHE) company, the first not-for-profit energy company run by a local authority, with the help of a commercial interest loan from the council. The company aims to tackle fuel poverty by making energy cheaper by buying energy in bulk from National Grid. RHE broke even by April 2018 and between April 2016 and April 2017 almost 30% of the company’s energy came from renewable sources.

Bristol followed suit in 2016 by setting up Bristol Energy and other cities including Leeds and Liverpool set up similar initiatives, mostly through a “white label” partnership with RHE. Under this arrangement, the tariffs and customer service are provided by RHE so each council does not need to get its own license.

Delegates at UNISON’s 2018 Energy Service Group Conference expressed some concern about municipal energy companies being promoted as a cheaper alternative to the big six retail energy companies, which employ thousands of UNISON members and recognise trade unions. The conference also noted concern that the companies were losing many millions of pounds in trading losses and that as the companies grow, it is likely they will have a negative impact on the job prospects of members.