LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – The UK government said Saturday it had approved a deal for 1.5 million customers of collapsed energy supplier Bulb to be transferred to rival company, Octopus Energy.
Bulb, Britain’s seventh-biggest supplier, collapsed in 2021 due to soaring wholesale prices, triggering special intervention from the government to protect its customers.
Octopus said it was paying the government a “nine-digit sum” and there will be a profit-sharing agreement for up to four years.
The government will give financial support to buy energy for Bulb customers over this winter.
The department for business said the agreement would “protect consumers and taxpayers”.
The Financial Times reported that the “effective nationalization” of Bulb had cost taxpayers more than £4 billion ($4.6 billion), expected to be the largest bailout since that of RBS bank during the 2008 financial crisis.
