Ofgem has announced it is minded to allow Shell Energy to claim a £354,000 last resort supply payment (LRSP) claim for costs incurred when, under the banner of First Utility, it took on the customers of Usio.
The company took on around 7,000 Usio customers through the supplier of last resort (SoLR) process in October 2018.
The energy retailer’s £354,000 claim, made on 30 August this year, is for the cost of refunding credit balances owed to customers when Usio ceased trading.
It is not claiming for the cost of “closed” credit balances owed to former customers who had switched to another supplier at the point the company exited the market.
Shell also indicated to the regulator that it had incurred a number of other costs in relation to its role as the SoLR which it not claiming for. These costs, which are not final, relate to third party contracts, customer call and contact handling.
Ofgem’s minded to decision is now up for consultation among industry stakeholders and a decision on the matter is expected by January.
This will allow the approved claims to be recovered from relevant gas and electricity distribution network companies in 2020/21.
In September, Ofgem agreed to allow Together Energy to claim up to £4.5 million to settle the costs it incurred during the SoLR process in December last year.