How stable are Octopus Energy? Are they strong enough to weather the current storm of bankruptcies?

[Andy]

oops not sure why that reposted.

[Stinsy]

I think we should be focussing on why energy is expensive right now, has it suddenly become much more expensive to produce? or has the "market" jacked the price up?

Consumers need to pay a fair price for energy, energy companies need to make a fair profit for supplying energy, and if poorer consumers are struggling they should be subsidised by taxation.

In my head anyway?

Desp

The price is/was high because:

• Successive governments failed to invest in new nuclear. A whole bunch of ageing reactors went offline simultaneously for planned/unplanned maintenance.

• There was little-if-any wind.

• Storage is still an unsolved problem.

• If renewables aren’t performing we rely on imported gas to generate electricity. The price of which has risen dramatically for lots of reasons (other European countries being in the same position as us, and Uncle Vlad playing games, being some of them).

You cannot blame “speculators jacking up the price”, in fact the opposite is true. Many energy companies (and their customers) have been cushioned from much of the price rises because they bought futures contracts from hedge funds, investment banks, and other speculators.

[spread-tee]

So you're saying it's a shortage of energy rather than the cost of production that is causing the spike?

Desp

[AE-NMidlands]

just found this from May 2020, but it was still interesting
https://www.times-series.co.uk/news/nat ... valuation/

British utility supplier Octopus Energy has achieved unicorn status, as a major new investment from one of Australia’s leading suppliers valued it at over £1 billion.
The company, run by Greg Jackson, has reached this status just five years after it was founded in 2015.
Origin Energy, described as the leading energy company in Australia, took a 20% stake in the UK business. It also signed a deal to license Octopus’s Kraken technology platform.
Kraken will bring in more than £300 million in licencing fees over the next three years, Octopus said
/snip/
It is another major milestone for a shifting UK energy scene. Octopus is still referred to as a challenger supplier, seen as nipping at the heels of the traditional Big Six.

However, after fellow challenger Ovo Energy bought Big Six stalwart SSE last year, the old terms are coming increasingly to be questioned.
Between them Ovo – including the SSE customers – Bulb and Octopus have captured around 25% of the market, according to the latest data from Ofgem.

As recently as 2012 all smaller suppliers did not even have 1% of the market between them.
Octopus is now worth around half of British Gas owner Centrica’s market capitalisation, despite only having around one fifth of its customer numbers in the UK.

[spread-tee]

Level playing field ??

https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... hree-years


From the article:-

"Shell and BP paid no corporation tax or production levies on North Sea oil operations between 2018 and 2020, and claimed tax reliefs of nearly £400m, according to annual “payments to governments” reports analysed by the Observer.

Over the same three-year period, they paid shareholders more than £44bn in dividends.
A petroleum revenue tax of 35% was effectively scrapped by the then chancellor, George Osborne, in 2016 and oil giants can claim billions of pounds in taxpayer handouts for decommissioning rigs."

If I were to ask HMRC if I could pay no corporation tax I think I can guess their answer

Cop out 26 needs to tackle this .....

Desp

[Bugtownboy]

I increasingly get the feeling that our ‘leaders’ look at the majority of the population as an inconsequence and have little respect for us.

We are effectively drones to spend our money on tat, carp coffee and takeaways to keep driving the economy.

The ‘leaders’ find increasingly blatant ways to make money for themselves, family or mates.

‘We’ increasingly promote and support our increasingly dysfunctional society by celebrating the culture of celebrity and the influencer - WTF whatever that is.

How we can tolerate people in work having to have state support to realise a basic standard of living is beyond me.

Although AGW is a defining point for humanity, I just can’t see the capitalist society (and I suppose I’m as guilty) letting go of the cash cow we’ve all become for a very small minority.

Or is it just me turning into a grumpy old g1t ?


Sorry if this is off the original topic, but I do think the whole energy market typifies the huge chasms developing in our society.

[Bugtownboy]

A bit more grist to the mill -

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/2021 ... -emissions

[Stinsy]

I increasingly get the feeling that our ‘leaders’ look at the majority of the population as an inconsequence and have little respect for us.

We are effectively drones to spend our money on tat, carp coffee and takeaways to keep driving the economy.

The ‘leaders’ find increasingly blatant ways to make money for themselves, family or mates.

‘We’ increasingly promote and support our increasingly dysfunctional society by celebrating the culture of celebrity and the influencer - WTF whatever that is.

How we can tolerate people in work having to have state support to realise a basic standard of living is beyond me.

Although AGW is a defining point for humanity, I just can’t see the capitalist society (and I suppose I’m as guilty) letting go of the cash cow we’ve all become for a very small minority.

Or is it just me turning into a grumpy old g1t ?


Sorry if this is off the original topic, but I do think the whole energy market typifies the huge chasms developing in our society.

‘Twas always thus. Politicians wearing different coloured rosettes are all the same in this regard. The oil companies, pharmaceutical companies, online advertising giants, and other global corporations rely on the status quo and have vast budgets set aside to fund and lobby politicians of all stripes to ensure the funds keep flowing. They care only about the next quarterly earnings statement. Long term social responsibility is an irrelevant concept.

A bit more grist to the mill -

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/2021 ... -emissions

A spoof account I follow on Twitter refers to COP26 as “The International Private Jet Exhibition”.

[Bugtownboy]

I increasingly get the feeling that our ‘leaders’ look at the majority of the population as an inconsequence and have little respect for us.

We are effectively drones to spend our money on tat, carp coffee and takeaways to keep driving the economy.

The ‘leaders’ find increasingly blatant ways to make money for themselves, family or mates.

‘We’ increasingly promote and support our increasingly dysfunctional society by celebrating the culture of celebrity and the influencer - WTF whatever that is.

How we can tolerate people in work having to have state support to realise a basic standard of living is beyond me.

Although AGW is a defining point for humanity, I just can’t see the capitalist society (and I suppose I’m as guilty) letting go of the cash cow we’ve all become for a very small minority.

Or is it just me turning into a grumpy old g1t ?


Sorry if this is off the original topic, but I do think the whole energy market typifies the huge chasms developing in our society.

‘Twas always thus. Politicians wearing different coloured rosettes are all the same in this regard. The oil companies, pharmaceutical companies, online advertising giants, and other global corporations rely on the status quo and have vast budgets set aside to fund and lobby politicians of all stripes to ensure the funds keep flowing. They care only about the next quarterly earnings statement. Long term social responsibility is an irrelevant concept.

Recognise that. But has it always been as blatant ?

[Fintray]

Another one bites the dust, Bluegreen.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59125866