E.ON UK
Encyclopedia
E.ON UK is an energy company in the United Kingdom
and a subsidiary of E.ON
, the world's largest investor-owned power and gas company. As Powergen, it was listed on the London Stock Exchange
and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
but since 1 July 2002 has been owned by E.ON AG of Germany
.
It is a vertically integrated utility company with interests in electrical generation
, electricity distribution
in the Midlands
region, and in the electricity and gas supply markets.
) was formed in 1990 as Public Limited Company
which was wholly owned by the UK government and acquired about 50% of the Central Electricity Generating Board generating capacity. 60% of Powergen was sold to private investors in 1991, followed by the remaining 40% in March 1995. It expanded considerably by acquiring the regional electricity company East Midlands Electricity
in 1998 and the supply business of TXU Energi
in 2002. Powergen was eventually taken over itself by E.ON
, an acquisition which was completed in January 2002.
It then bought the Distribution Network Operator
Midlands Electricity
in 2004. This was merged with the distribution business of East Midlands Electricity and rebranded as Central Networks. The Industrial & Commercial Retail business was rebranded as E.ON UK on 5 July 2004. The creation of the Central Networks business in April 2004 included "a company of E.ON" as part of its logotype. In October 2005 it was also added to the Powergen logotype.
In June 2007, a major advertising campaign entitled "The wind of change", containing advertisements using the E.ON logo, was launched. The campaign featured the Robin Rigg offshore wind farm in the Solway Firth
, currently in development. In the consumer market, this was complemented by a replacement of the mostly blue Powergen identity to the red identity of E.ON, and the launch of a new product, Go Green, using electricity from renewable sources and carbon offset
gas.
On 22 October 2007, the company announced that the E.ON Energy and Powergen brands would change to E.ON as of 1 November and 3 December 2007 respectively.
In January 2008, E.ON acquired West Midlands
-based CHN Group, a provider of heating services to builders, local authorities and housing associations across the region. and in August 2008 completed the purchase of the Street Lighting business lighting projects of ABB Ltd. It intended to improve its existing lighting business by purchasing the ABB business.ABB.
In 2008 and 2009 a number of protests took place at E.ON UK's power station including a Climate Camp
at their Kingsnorth power station
in August 2008 and at their Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station
in October 2009.
On 20 January 2010, E.ON UK announced the closure of its Rayleigh Customer Service Centre and the loss of 600 jobs. The company was forced to bring forward the announcement by one day after the information was leaked to a local newspaper. This has been criticised as a money-saving exercise by an organisation which has seen an increase in profits of 18% in 2009 and news that E.ON UK have made £80 million in profits so far in the financial year 2009/10.
Other businesses within E.ON were also affected by these round of job losses, including its IT support and its Highways Lighting operations.
In March 2011, E.ON sold Central Networks to PPL
for £3.5 billion.
at Westwood Business Park, in a building designed by Bennetts Associates
. There are numerous other offices and power generation sites across the country.
UK businesses
E.ON UK's businesses comprise of:
Other UK businesses
E.ON's other operations in the UK include:
Powergen sponsored the ITV National Weather forecasts from its launch in 1989 up to 2007, a period of 18 years. They were known for their memorable sponsorship sequences from weather themes circulating around the (or parts of) the Powergen logo, and from 1996, the Weathergens, a "mascot" of Powergen representing different types of weather. The sponsorship ended in 2007 and ITV National Weather is now sponsored by The Co-operative Food
.
Sport
In 2006, E.ON UK announced that it was to be the sponsor of the FA Cup
for a four-year period. During this period, the competition is formally called "The FA Cup sponsored by E.ON". Prior to 2006, the company had sponsored the rugby union
and rugby league
cup competitions under the Powergen brand.
The company is the energy partner of the Football League, and sponsors the E.ON Lounge at the Ricoh Arena
, the home of Coventry City Football Club.
In other sports, E.ON UK is also a sponsor of the Tour of Britain
cycling championship, and in 2007 launched a campaign with Ellen MacArthur
to encourage energy efficiency within businesses.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and a subsidiary of E.ON
E.ON
E.ON AG, marketed with an interpunct as E•ON, is the holding company of the world's largest investor-owned energy service provider based in Düsseldorf, Germany. The name comes from the Greek word aeon which means eternity....
, the world's largest investor-owned power and gas company. As Powergen, it was listed on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
FTSE 100 Index
The FTSE 100 Index, also called FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the footsie , is a share index of the 100 most highly capitalised UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange....
but since 1 July 2002 has been owned by E.ON AG of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
It is a vertically integrated utility company with interests in electrical generation
Electricity generation
Electricity generation is the process of generating electric energy from other forms of energy.The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday...
, electricity distribution
Electricity distribution
File:Electricity grid simple- North America.svg|thumb|380px|right|Simplified diagram of AC electricity distribution from generation stations to consumers...
in the Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
region, and in the electricity and gas supply markets.
History
E.ON UK (known as Powergen prior to acquisition by E.ONE.ON
E.ON AG, marketed with an interpunct as E•ON, is the holding company of the world's largest investor-owned energy service provider based in Düsseldorf, Germany. The name comes from the Greek word aeon which means eternity....
) was formed in 1990 as Public Limited Company
Public limited company
A public limited company is a limited liability company that sells shares to the public in United Kingdom company law, in the Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth jurisdictions....
which was wholly owned by the UK government and acquired about 50% of the Central Electricity Generating Board generating capacity. 60% of Powergen was sold to private investors in 1991, followed by the remaining 40% in March 1995. It expanded considerably by acquiring the regional electricity company East Midlands Electricity
East Midlands Electricity
The East Midlands Electricity Board was formed in 1947, one of the 12 area electricity boards specified under the Electricity Act 1947.-Supply area:...
in 1998 and the supply business of TXU Energi
The Energy Group
The Energy Group plc was a British power generator and distributor. After it was demerged from Hanson plc in 1996 it was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but it was acquired by Texas Utilities in 1998....
in 2002. Powergen was eventually taken over itself by E.ON
E.ON
E.ON AG, marketed with an interpunct as E•ON, is the holding company of the world's largest investor-owned energy service provider based in Düsseldorf, Germany. The name comes from the Greek word aeon which means eternity....
, an acquisition which was completed in January 2002.
It then bought the Distribution Network Operator
Distribution Network Operator
Distribution network operators are companies licensed to distribute electricity in Great Britain by the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets....
Midlands Electricity
Midlands Electricity
The Midlands Electricity Board was the public sector utility company responsible for electricity generation and electrical infrastructure maintenance in the Midlands of England prior to 1990...
in 2004. This was merged with the distribution business of East Midlands Electricity and rebranded as Central Networks. The Industrial & Commercial Retail business was rebranded as E.ON UK on 5 July 2004. The creation of the Central Networks business in April 2004 included "a company of E.ON" as part of its logotype. In October 2005 it was also added to the Powergen logotype.
In June 2007, a major advertising campaign entitled "The wind of change", containing advertisements using the E.ON logo, was launched. The campaign featured the Robin Rigg offshore wind farm in the Solway Firth
Solway Firth
The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very...
, currently in development. In the consumer market, this was complemented by a replacement of the mostly blue Powergen identity to the red identity of E.ON, and the launch of a new product, Go Green, using electricity from renewable sources and carbon offset
Carbon offset
A carbon offset is a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for or to offset an emission made elsewhere....
gas.
On 22 October 2007, the company announced that the E.ON Energy and Powergen brands would change to E.ON as of 1 November and 3 December 2007 respectively.
In January 2008, E.ON acquired West Midlands
West Midlands (region)
The West Midlands is an official region of England, covering the western half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It contains the second most populous British city, Birmingham, and the larger West Midlands conurbation, which includes the city of Wolverhampton and large towns of Dudley,...
-based CHN Group, a provider of heating services to builders, local authorities and housing associations across the region. and in August 2008 completed the purchase of the Street Lighting business lighting projects of ABB Ltd. It intended to improve its existing lighting business by purchasing the ABB business.ABB.
In 2008 and 2009 a number of protests took place at E.ON UK's power station including a Climate Camp
Camp for Climate Action
The Camps for Climate Action are campaign gatherings that take place to draw attention to, and act as a base for direct action against, major carbon emitters, as well as to develop ways to create a zero-carbon society...
at their Kingsnorth power station
Kingsnorth power station
Kingsnorth is a dual-fired coal and oil power station on the Hoo Peninsula at Medway in Kent, South East England. The four-unit station is owned and operated by energy firm E.ON UK, and has a generating capacity of 1,940 megawatts. It is capable of operating on either coal or oil though in practice...
in August 2008 and at their Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station
Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station
Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station is a coal-fired power station operated by E.ON UK at Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottinghamshire, England. Commissioned in 1968 by the then Central Electricity Generating Board, the station has a capacity of 2,000 MW...
in October 2009.
On 20 January 2010, E.ON UK announced the closure of its Rayleigh Customer Service Centre and the loss of 600 jobs. The company was forced to bring forward the announcement by one day after the information was leaked to a local newspaper. This has been criticised as a money-saving exercise by an organisation which has seen an increase in profits of 18% in 2009 and news that E.ON UK have made £80 million in profits so far in the financial year 2009/10.
Other businesses within E.ON were also affected by these round of job losses, including its IT support and its Highways Lighting operations.
In March 2011, E.ON sold Central Networks to PPL
PPL (utility)
PPL, formerly known as PP&L or Pennsylvania Power and Light, is an energy company headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA. It currently controls about 19,000 megawatts of electrical generating capacity in the United States, primarily in Pennsylvania and Montana, and delivers electricity to...
for £3.5 billion.
Operations
The company's headquarters are in CoventryCoventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
at Westwood Business Park, in a building designed by Bennetts Associates
Bennetts Associates
Bennetts Associates is one of the UK’s leading firms of architects, and has won more than 100 awards since its foundation in 1987.In particular, Bennetts Associates is recognised for its expertise in sustainability through innovative projects such as the Wessex Water Operations Centre in Bath,...
. There are numerous other offices and power generation sites across the country.
UK businesses
E.ON UK's businesses comprise of:
- Energy Solutions (a merger of the former Retail and Energy Services businesses)
- Business Services (an internal service provider)
- Central functions including Corporate Affairs & Finance under the banner UK Centre
Other UK businesses
E.ON's other operations in the UK include:
- E.ON Climate and Renewables - renewables and climate protection projects
- E.ON New Build & Technology Limited - engineering and technology
- E.ON Ruhrgas UK North Sea - oil and gas exploration and production, within the UK sector of the North SeaNorth SeaIn the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
- E.ON IT UK - the company's IT service provider
Generation
E.ON operate a number of different power generators figures by email from e.on| Name | Output(MW) Elect | Out (MW) heat | Type | (tonnes per annum) | notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station is a coal-fired power station operated by E.ON UK at Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottinghamshire, England. Commissioned in 1968 by the then Central Electricity Generating Board, the station has a capacity of 2,000 MW... |
2,000 | coal | 8,000,000 -10,000,000 | ||
| Kingsnorth power station Kingsnorth power station Kingsnorth is a dual-fired coal and oil power station on the Hoo Peninsula at Medway in Kent, South East England. The four-unit station is owned and operated by energy firm E.ON UK, and has a generating capacity of 1,940 megawatts. It is capable of operating on either coal or oil though in practice... |
1,940 | coal | 6,400,000 | To close by 2015 | |
| Ironbridge Power Station Ironbridge Power Station The Ironbridge power stations refers to a series of two coal-fired power stations which have occupied a site on the banks of the River Severn at Buildwas in Shropshire, England. The current Ironbridge B power station is operated by E.ON UK... |
1,000 | coal | 1,800,000 | To close by 2015 | |
| Connah's Quay Power Station Connah's Quay Power Station Connah's Quay Power Station is a 1,420 MW gas-fired power station to the west of Connah's Quay in Flintshire in north Wales. It is next to the A548, being tightly situated between the road and the south bank of the River Dee.-History:... |
1,420 | gas | 3,300,000 | ||
| Killingholme Power Station Killingholme Power Station Killingholme Power Station is the name given to two CCGT natural gas power stations near to East Halton and North Killingholme in North Lincolnshire; Killigholme B opened in 1993 and is owned by E.ON UK and Killingholme A opened in 1994 and is owned by Centrica.-900 MW plant:The E.ON UK... |
900 | gas | 2,100,000 | ||
| Enfield Power Station Enfield Power Station Enfield Power Station is a 408 MW gas-fired station, opened on part of the original Brimsdown Power Station site on at Brimsdown in the North London Borough of Enfield... |
408 | gas | 1,000,000 | ||
| Cottam Development Centre | 400 | gas | 912,000 | ||
| Taylor's Lane | 132 | gas | 3,600 | ||
| Grain Power Station Grain Power Station Grain Power Station is an oil-fired and CCGT power station in Kent, England with operational capacity of 1,320MW owned by E.ON UK.-History:Grain was built on a site for the nationalised Central Electricity Generating Board. It was built by the Cleveland Bridge Company beginning in 1975. It opened... |
1,380 | oil | 429,000 | To close by 2015 (replacement CHP plant being built) | |
| Askam Cumbria | 4.62 | onshore wind | |||
| Bessy Bell County Tyrone | 5 | onshore wind | |||
| Blood Hill Norfolk | 2.25 | onshore wind | |||
| Bowbeat Scottish Borders | 31.2 | onshore wind | |||
| Deucheran Hill Kintyre | 15.75 | onshore wind | |||
| Great Eppleton Tyne and Wear | 3 | onshore wind | |||
| Holmside, Harehill and High Volts County Durham | 18 | onshore wind | |||
| Lowca Cumbria | 4.62 | onshore wind | |||
| Out Newton, East Riding of Yorkshire | 9.1 | onshore wind | |||
| Ovenden Moor West Yorkshire | 9.2 | onshore wind | |||
| Rheidol Ceredigion | 2.4 | onshore wind | |||
| Rhyd-y-Groes Anglesey | 7.2 | onshore wind | |||
| Royd Moor South Yorkshire | 6.5 | onshore wind | |||
| St. Breock Cornwall | 4.95 | onshore wind | |||
| Siddick and Oldside Cumbria | 9.6 | onshore wind | |||
| Bradford West Yorkshire | 4.5 | 28 | CHP | 35,000 | |
| Castleford West Yorkshire | 56 | ||||
| CHP | 78,000 | ||||
| Citigen London | 31 | 25 | CHP | 18,000 | |
| Corby | CHP | 637,000 | |||
| Humber Lincolnshire | 25 | 90 | CHP | ||
| Kemsley 1 Kent | 80 | 200 | CHP | 392,000 | |
| Leeds West Yorkshire | 4.5 | 16 | CHP | 20,000 | |
| Nottingham Nottinghamshire | 4.9 | 16 | CHP | ||
| Port of Liverpool Merseyside | 30 | 55 | CHP | 91,000 | |
| Sandbach Cheshire | 56 | ||||
| CHP | 144,000 | ||||
| Stoke Staffordshire | 56 | 40 | CHP | 167,000 | |
| Thornhill West Yorkshire | 50 | ||||
| CHP | 56,000 | ||||
| Winnington Cheshire | 130 | 400 | CHP | 755,000 | |
| Workington Cumbria | 4 | 82 | CHP | 209,000 | |
| Scroby Sands wind farm Scroby Sands wind farm The Scroby Sands Wind Farm is a wind farm located on the Scroby Sands sandbank in the North Sea, off the coast of Great Yarmouth in eastern England, United Kingdom. It was commissioned in March 2004 by Powergen Renewables Offshore, a division of E.ON UK. It is expected to produce up to a maximum... |
60 | offshore wind | |||
| Blyth Blyth, Northumberland Blyth is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approximately 21 kilometres northeast of Newcastle upon Tyne... |
4 | offshore wind | |||
| Steven's Croft | 44 | biomas | 1,154 | ||
Sponsorship
ITV National WeatherPowergen sponsored the ITV National Weather forecasts from its launch in 1989 up to 2007, a period of 18 years. They were known for their memorable sponsorship sequences from weather themes circulating around the (or parts of) the Powergen logo, and from 1996, the Weathergens, a "mascot" of Powergen representing different types of weather. The sponsorship ended in 2007 and ITV National Weather is now sponsored by The Co-operative Food
The Co-operative Food
The Co-operative Food, abbreviated sometimes to the Co-op, is a brand devised for the supermarket and convenience store business of the UK's consumers' co-operative movement. It is the name of the largest division of The Co-operative Group, and is used by other independent consumer co-operatives...
.
Sport
In 2006, E.ON UK announced that it was to be the sponsor of the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
for a four-year period. During this period, the competition is formally called "The FA Cup sponsored by E.ON". Prior to 2006, the company had sponsored the rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
cup competitions under the Powergen brand.
The company is the energy partner of the Football League, and sponsors the E.ON Lounge at the Ricoh Arena
Ricoh Arena
The Ricoh Arena , home to Coventry City F.C., is a stadium complex situated in the Rowleys Green district of the city of Coventry, England containing a 32,609 seater football stadium, a 6,000 square-metre exhibition hall, a hotel, a leisure club, and a casino...
, the home of Coventry City Football Club.
In other sports, E.ON UK is also a sponsor of the Tour of Britain
Tour of Britain
The Tour of Britain is a cycle race, conducted over several stages, in which participants race from place to place across parts of Great Britain....
cycling championship, and in 2007 launched a campaign with Ellen MacArthur
Ellen MacArthur
Dame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
to encourage energy efficiency within businesses.
See also
- Energy policy of the United KingdomEnergy policy of the United KingdomThe current energy policy of the United Kingdom is set out in the Energy White Paper of May 2007 and Low Carbon Transition Plan of July 2009, building on previous work including the 2003 Energy White Paper and the Energy Review Report in 2006...
- Energy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use in the United Kingdom stood at 3,894.6 kilogrammes of oil equivalent per capita in 2005 compared to a world average of 1,778.0. In 2008, total energy consumed was 9.85 exajoules - around 2% of the estimated 474 EJ worldwide total...
- Scroby Sands wind farmScroby Sands wind farmThe Scroby Sands Wind Farm is a wind farm located on the Scroby Sands sandbank in the North Sea, off the coast of Great Yarmouth in eastern England, United Kingdom. It was commissioned in March 2004 by Powergen Renewables Offshore, a division of E.ON UK. It is expected to produce up to a maximum...