The first of its kind initiative will cut out the middle man thereby saving its residents an excess of one million pounds per year in energy costs, said Alistair Macpherson, CEO of Plymouth Energy Community.
In a statement Ovo Energy said it plans to democratise the energy market by initiating a seismic power shift within the industry away from energy companies and back to the customers they serve. The company believes as many as 500 partnerships can be formed across the country by 2020, serving up to a million customers.
OVO Energy founder and CEO, Stephen Fitzpatrick, said: “What we’re offering is a way for trusted groups like local authorities or community organisations to take back the power from companies, which they no longer trust to serve customers’ best interests. We think the industry will look very different in a few years’ time as community-led partnerships like this spring up to challenge the incumbents.”
Plymouth Energy Community CEO, Alistair Macpherson, “The energy revolution is well under way in Plymouth; our members’ co-operative has already launched services related to fuel debt, energy switching, home insulation and locally owned renewables. Bespoke tariffs, specifically designed to meet our community’s needs, are logically the next step.”
She added, “We are confident that we could potentially save Plymouth residents well in excess of £1 million per year. We applaud OVO’s innovative approach to making this happen.”
The announcement was made at the Liberal Democrat Party Conference on 5 October. Secretary of state for Energy and Climate Change Edward Davey added: “Community energy us one of the best ways of fostering trust and competition in the energy market. OVO Energy and Plymouth Energy Community are doing exactly what government is asking businesses to deliver. I welcome the announcement today.”