Spark of hope for energy firm after collapse of utility supplier to private tenants

Spark Energy, the utilities provider specialising in the lettings industry which collapsed on Friday, could be rescued by a larger rival.

On Friday, KPMG was appointed as administrator of the energy firm, whose business model includes paying agents a fee for a successful introduction to tenants.

It was later announced that a conditional sale has been agreed with competitor Ovo Energy.

The deal has to be approved by Ofgem.

Ovo Energy is proposing taking over Spark’s customers, while Spark would become a stand-alone part of the supplier.

Spark was the ninth energy company to collapse since November 2016. According to the Sunday Times, four or five more companies could go under this winter.

The paper quotes one energy company boss as saying: “The relentless focus on switching to the cheapest tariffs has driven an unsustainable business model.”

Tenants and other Spark users should take meter readings at the earliest opportunity, but should not attempt to switch until Ofgem has announced a new provider.

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3 Comments

  1. Andy Halstead

     
    Very tough times for everyone at Spark in a difficult market. I hope that they can work things out for their team, customers and agents.
     

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  2. jeremy1960

    “The relentless focus on switching to the cheapest tariffs has driven an unsustainable business model.”

    Sounds like the online agent mantra!

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  3. Russell Williams

    Good riddance to them.  Awful company with awful customer service.

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