Japanese industrial group Mitsubishi Corporation is to purchase a 20% stake in the rapidly-growing UK electricity supplier Ovo Energy, giving them a foothold in UK digital energy.
The ten-year-old start-up has been valued at around £1 billion, making Ovo one of the UK's "unicorn companies". The £216 million cash boost from the Mitsubishi deal will go towards funding the company's international expansion and to accelerate development of Kaluza, Ovo's intelligent energy technologies unit. This new division is tasked with the development and management of the supporting hardware and software used for the integration of electric vehicles and dynamic battery storage onto the grid.
Stephen Fitzpatrick, CEO and founder of Ovo Energy, said that the company was already present in Germany and would launch in France in July 2019, with Spain and Australia to follow.
Ovo energy
Ovo Energy founder and CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick, speaking an an event in November 2018. Source: Ovo Energy.
“Our ambitions go far beyond the UK,” said Mr Fitzpatrick, referring to Britain’s energy sector as a “very difficult business”.
Ovo Energy has grown quickly in the past ten years and is now, with 1.5 million customers, the UK's largest independent energy supplier. The company has been expanding into smart home devices and investing in new energy storage and electric vehicle charging technologies. Last year, Ovo launched the world's first domestic vehicle-to-grid charger.
“Transitioning away from fossil fuels is the biggest challenge we face in the 21st Century. The costs of electric vehicles, battery storage and wind and solar power have fallen dramatically in recent years, but it’s becoming increasingly complex to integrate them onto the grid. To succeed, we will need to develop new technology and redesign the energy system around the customer. We want to be at the forefront of that global, tech-enabled transition to a zero carbon energy system. This investment from Mitsubishi Corporation will help us get there,” said Mr Fitzpatrick.
For Mitsubishi Corporation, the deal is a strategic investment. The Japanese giant already has around 6,200 MW of energy assets in its portfolio, the rough equivalent of 8.5 million households. Mitsubishi is present across the entire renewable energy value chain, owning and operating renewable energy assets, energy trading, manufacturing lithium-ion batteries and investing in distributed renewable energy projects including energy storage.
“OVO and Mitsubishi Corporation share the same vision for the future of energy: secure, distributed and consumer centric, with affordable clean energy for everyone. We’re delighted to be working with an exceptional global partner which is perfectly placed to help us accelerate our international expansion and technology roll out,” continued Stephen Fitzpatrick.
Back to Homepage
Back to Energy & Utilities
Back to Technology & Innovation