Following Bulb entering special administration last year, several energy companies have reportedly made bids to buy the energy supplier.
Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported that Octopus Energy had entered the race to buy Bulb, while Centrica and Abu Dhabi-based energy company Masdar are also allegedly in talks with the UK government about a deal to buy the company.
Both Octopus Energy and Centrica refused to provide Current± with any comment on this, while a spokesperson for Masdar said: “Masdar continues to drive substantial growth across its global clean energy portfolio, which includes world-leading wind and battery storage projects in the United Kingdom.
“As a global clean energy powerhouse, we remain committed to growing our presence in the UK and elsewhere to help support the energy transition. Masdar does not comment on market speculation.”
Both Centrica and Octopus Energy have a history of acquisitions, with Octopus launching in Spain, Italy and the US via acquisitions.
Centrica, meanwhile, bought Robin Hood Energy’s customer base following the council-owned supplier running into financial struggles, as well as acquiring Nabuh Energy in 2021.
Centrica has also been appointed as the Supplier of Last Resort for several energy suppliers that failed in 2021 as part of a string of collapses, with Bulb entering special administration during this time.
These failures primarily resulted from the ongoing energy crisis, with Bulb at the time referencing the gas supply shortage, lower exports from Russia and increasing demand, which it said meant the energy sector remained unpredictable.
It followed Bulb looking for new funding opportunities several months prior due to the high gas prices.
Prior to being placed into special administration, there was interest from several companies in acquiring Bulb, CEO and co-founder Hayden Wood told the BEIS select committee earlier this year, adding that Bulb didn’t reject any offers from investors.
“We at Bulb should take responsibility for how the business failed,” he said at the time.
