LONDON: Shell is conducting a “strategic review” of its home energy retail business in the UK, the Netherlands and Germany amid “tough market conditions,“ the British energy giant announced on Thursday (Jan 26).
The review of Shell Energy, which supplies energy to around 1.4 million homes across Britain and broadband to around half a million customers, could affect its 2,000-strong UK workforce.
The London-based firm said it was likely to take “a number of months” and stressed that “no decisions have yet been taken on the way forward”.
“We’ve informed relevant staff of the start of a strategic review of our home energy retail businesses in the UK, the Netherlands and Germany,” Shell said in a statement.
The assessment was part of a longer-term strategy to keep exploring different options, it said.
“We remain committed to our integrated business model that produces, buys, trades, transports and sells energy around the world,” it added.
Its wholesale and business energy supply operations, as well as home energy supply businesses in the United States and Australia, are not part of the review.
Energy suppliers in the UK have had a difficult few years, with dozens collapsing or being sold after the price of wholesale gas rocketed, partly due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Due to the UK’’s energy market price cap, the increases they could charge households for that more expensive energy were limited.
Earlier on Thursday, telecoms regulator Ofcom urged Shell Energy’s broadband operation to do better, announcing that it had “continued to attract the most broadband (and) landline complaints”.
“We’re monitoring Shell’s performance closely (and) have urged it to get a grip on fixing the causes of these issues,” it added. – AFP