Imagine driving from energy provider to energy provider. Calling company after company. All so that you can compare energy providers and get the best deal. Wouldn’t it be great if we had a guide that we could use to compare energy providers?
Nowadays we can compare energy providers online. We do not need to physically go from company to company, or make an endless amount of phone calls, to get a guide for comparison. The entire process of getting a guide to comparing energy providers can now be found and completed online.
The UK has various domestic and business energy-providing companies. The six biggest energy companies are known as the ‘Big 6’. You can visit comparison websites to get more information regarding each of these six companies.
Who Are the “Big 6”?
During the 1980s and 1990s, the UK energy sector was privatized. Ever since this privatization the six biggest energy industry providers, the ‘Big 6’, have been the top energy providers for domestic and commercial energy.
These companies are British Gas, EDF Energy, E.ON, npower, ScottishPower, and SSE. They provide some of the best business energy tariffs in terms of value as well as extra services.
British Gas
British Gas is the UK’s largest energy provider and provides energy to about 12 million homes and 350 000 businesses. It is a subsidiary of the UK-based Centrica PLC. Homeowners and business owners are presented with a wide variety of energy tariffs. British Gas offers businesses a full range of commercial services.
These include:
- Basic fixed-price gas and electricity tariffs.
- Flexible 30-day rolling energy plans.
- Full boiler services.
- Renewable energy solutions.
They also offer a 100% renewable electricity plan, which is also Carbon Trust-certified to businesses who have a keen interest in exploring green energy paths.
EDF Energy
EDF Energy is a subsidiary of Électricité de France, a company owned by the French government. EDF Energy took over numerous previous UK energy suppliers, including Seaboard, London Energy, and SWEB Energy.
This energy supplier is currently the largest low-carbon electricity supplier out of the ‘Big 6’. The company supplies gas and electricity at fixed and flexible tariffs for businesses across the UK. They currently have roughly six million customers throughout the UK.
The supplier offers regular business energy plans, as well as various other services. These services include:
- Access to its online management systems.
- Twenty-four-seven access to live customer chat.
- Free access to dedicated UK business advisors who will ensure that your business is getting the most out of its energy plan.
- Assistance for new start-up businesses.
- Assistance for businesses who want to take part in sustainable energy initiatives.
E.ON
E.ON is a German-based supplier and one of the world’s largest investor-owned energy companies you would ever come across. In the United Kingdom alone, the company has more than 4 million customers they supply gas and electricity. E.ON has specially tailored plans and deals for homeowners as well as business owners.
These plans include smart and sustainable energy solutions. E.ON provides deals and tariffs based on the industry that a business is a part of, rather than its size and location.
Just to name a few, these industries include:
- Retail.
- Hospitality and leisure.
- Commercial real estate.
- Education.
- Manufacturing.
- Healthcare.
npower
This supplier was created in 1990 and was originally named National Power. It is now owned by the German-based RWE Group, which is one of Europe’s leading gas and electricity providers. npower is the UK’s third biggest energy supplier and has around 6,5 million household and business customers in the UK alone.
The company offers businesses both fixed prices and variable energy plans. They are determined to install smart meters for all of their business customers as part of their devotion to smart technology.
A Business Reward scheme is operated by npower, which offers business owners and employees a variety of special offers and discounts on food, drink, and entertainment activities.
ScottishPower
ScottishPower is part of the Spanish Iberdrola Group, one of the top corporations in the green energy industry, as well as one of the biggest suppliers of electricity in the world.
ScottishPower is a supplier of gas and electricity to more than five million customers in the UK. They specialize in SME energy plans and are popular with start-up businesses. They are committed to providing commercial energy choices that are clear and simple.
The company generates its energy 100% from wind energy and smart grids. They are presently the first ever integrated energy supplier to do that in the UK. They are also partnered with Carbon Trust and are experts in giving their customers free energy-saving advice.
SSE
SSE is owned by the British company OVO Energy and operated alongside its other regional brands, including SSE SWALEC, SSE Scottish Hydro, SSE Atlantic, and SSE Southern Electric. SSE is the second biggest energy supplier in the UK. SSE offers a variety of extra services to go with its selection of different business energy plans.
No matter the size of the business that the customer has, SSE will create unique energy plans for them. SSE will consult specialist business energy advisors to help them with the creation of special energy services and tariffs according to the needs and requirements of every business.
Conclusion
These six suppliers have managed to stay at the top of their industries even though their industry has become more competitive and consumer-driven. Even when consumers turned to smaller energy suppliers, the six have still retained their position at the top. The ‘Big 6’ can also serve as a guide to other companies in comparing energy providers online.