UK Energy Incubator Hub, formerly Euston Energy, has been ordered by Ofgem to provide financial and other information relating to its activities.
The company is a domestic supplier which serves around 4,000 customers and operates under the brands Northumbria Energy and Neo Energy.
Under the provisional order issued by the regulator, UK Energy Incubator Hub is now required to immediately provide this information and Ofgem said it expects the supplier to engage “in a constructive manner”.
If the retailer fails to provide the information requested, it will be in breach of its licence conditions.
“Failure to comply with a provisional order may result in further enforcement action being taken by Ofgem which could include UK Energy Incubator Hub Ltd being stripped of its licence to operate in the GB market,” Ofgem added.
Speaking to Utility Week in 2020 Neo Energy chief executive and UK Energy Incubator Hub manager Oliver Friedrich said Neo would offer free electricity to new customers for June and July of that year and that the offer will be paid for through the company’s marketing budget.
Friedrich, who previously worked with Brilliant Energy, which has since ceased trading, and URE Energy which had its licence revoked in the summer of 2019, said: “There are so many risks to run a company in general, there are so many additional risks running an energy company and it’s just another one.
“It’s very simple, we don’t take 20-30,000 customers on board, we do a limited offer until 1 May. Then I have done my piece to support the public situation.”
He added: “We’ve got customers asking for it and we are going to sign them up. We will do this as long as I can afford it. If we, as a very small market participant, help maybe 100, 200 or 1,000 households for the next couple of months, then then we did our share.”
On Companies House Friedrich is listed as a manager of Neo Energy, as well as director of operations at green electricity generator Acorn Peach Energy and as a manager at Celtic Powerhouse Management – a consultancy service.