Ofgem has launched an investigation into a company which provides solar panels and sells the electricity produced to social housing tenants in Stoke-on-Trent.
The Community Energy Scheme was set up in 2018 and is an arrangement between Stoke-on-Trent City Council and Community Energy Scheme UK (CES).
CES installs solar photovoltaic panels on Stoke’s social housing roofs and then sells the electricity from these panels to the tenants.
Ofgem’s investigation, announced this morning (20 August), is in relation to the sales and customer service practices of CES, as well as the actual installations.
It will examine whether the company breached consumer protection rules, including potential breaches of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013.
The energy regulator stressed that the opening of the investigation does not imply it has made any findings about non-compliance.
Utility Week has contacted Stoke-on-Trent City Council and Community Energy Scheme UK for comment but they had yet responded at the time of publication.