High gas prices are driving small, new suppliers out of business
Shell and Octopus join ‘Big Six’ in backstopping UK supplier collapses
Oil major and established independent step in as smaller new gas and power market entrants flounder
September has seen the number of 2021 bankruptcies among the UK’s gas and electricity suppliers jump from three to twelve. Energy retailers Enstroga, Igloo Energy, Symbio Energy, Avro Energy, Green, People's Energy, Utility Point, PFP Energy and MoneyPlus Energy have all folded due to a toxic combination of soaring wholesale prices, a government-imposed price cap for domestic customers that prevents firms from passing on the full extent of this volatility and in several cases, weak balance sheets and subpar risk management from fledgling market entrants. They join August departure Hub Energy and January exits Green Network Energy and Simplicity Energy (see Fig.1).
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
