Customers of British Gas, Ecotricity, EDF and E.ON Next can now own part of a wind farm or solar park co-operative managed by Ripple Energy.
The four UK energy companies are expected to join current Ripple supply partners, Your Co-op Energy (powered by Octopus Energy) and Unify Energy, meaning Ripple partners would cover 70% of households in Great Britain.
As such, customers will not have to switch energy providers to sign up with Ripple.
The partnership would also make clean electricity ownership cheaper and more accessible nationwide. Ripple works with suppliers to apply savings generated by their renewable energy sites directly to energy bills so customers can choose to power their homes or businesses with up to 100% clean energy.
Catherine O’Kelly, managing director of British Gas Energy, said: “Not only will our customers save money on their energy bills, they will also cut the carbon footprint of their homes.”
Ripple’s founder and CEO, Sarah Merrick, said: “Collaborating with even more of the UK’s major energy suppliers will not only support that mission but demonstrate their dedication to sustainability and delivering value to their customers.
“Action to accelerate the UK’s transition to clean energy is more important than ever. Partnerships like these can play a crucial role in making renewable energy accessible to all.”
Community energy is carving out an increasingly prominent role within the UK’s energy transition, a shift recognised by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) , which committed £10 million to community energy groups in August 2023.
Last week, Ripple confirmed its ‘biggest project to date’, managing Whitelaw Brae wind farm in the Scottish Borders.
In an interview, Merrick told Current±: “It just seemed wrong to me that it was only companies at a scale similar to Google and Facebook that had the opportunity to directly access what had become the UK’s cheapest source of power.”
Dale Vince OBE, founder of Ecotricity – which runs a ‘bills into mills’ scheme, using customer energy bills to build new sources of green energy – said: “This will give Ecotricity customers the opportunity to play an even bigger part in Britain’s journey to energy independence. We’re looking forward to being part of this cooperative.”
Julian Lennertz, chief commercial officer of E.ON Next, said: “Partnering with Ripple gives our customers even more easy ways to play their role in – and benefit from – everything and everyone being powered by sustainable energy.”
