npower
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA former major UK household energy supplier whose surviving brand operation focuses on supplying gas and electricity to large business customers.
Last updated October 14, 2026
Overview
npower is a British energy brand that developed from the UK consumer-supply operations of National Power and became one of the country's large gas and electricity suppliers. The business was established in 2000 after National Power separated its international operations into International Power, leaving its UK consumer division within the newly formed Innogy plc. Its early growth reflected the restructuring and consolidation of the UK electricity market following privatisation. In 2001, Innogy expanded its regional presence by acquiring Yorkshire Electricity. It subsequently exchanged Yorkshire Electricity's distribution business for the supply business of Northern Electric, concentrating more heavily on energy supply and customer services. In March 2002, the German energy group RWE acquired Innogy. The UK supply activities were rebranded RWE npower, while the npower name became the principal customer-facing identity for electricity and gas. During the following decade, the business operated across residential and commercial energy, and it also developed energy-services activities. Its Hometeam operation provided boiler, central-heating and related home-services support. npower also acquired businesses serving social housing and public-sector customers, including Superior Plumbing and SPI Group. In 2006, it acquired a minority interest in Telecom Plus and obtained access to management services covering areas such as billing, metering, customer service, debt collection and administration. The Telecom Plus-related interests were later sold back to Utility Warehouse in 2013 for £218 million, according to contemporary reporting summarized in the brand's reference material. npower was widely treated as one of the UK's Big Six energy suppliers, a group that dominated household gas and electricity supply before the market became more fragmented. Its position was nevertheless weakened by customer losses, complaints, operational problems, regulatory penalties and difficult trading conditions. In 2015, it reportedly lost 351,000 customers. In 2016, the company announced a £106 million loss and plans for approximately 2,500 job reductions globally, including the transfer of more than 1,000 back-office roles to India. Customer complaints and service performance were cited among the pressures affecting the business. A major corporate reorganisation followed in April 2016, when RWE separated its renewable-energy, networks and retail activities into Innogy SE. npower moved into the new Innogy structure and adopted the corporate name Npower Limited. The generating assets associated with coal, gas and oil-fired power stations were placed in RWE Generation UK rather than remaining within the retail-supply company. This separation distinguished the npower brand's supply and services activities from the group's power-generation operations. In 2017, Innogy and SSE proposed combining npower's British residential and business retail operations with SSE's household energy-supply and home-services business. The proposed transaction received preliminary and then full UK competition clearance in 2018, but the parties abandoned it in December 2018. They cited price-cap effects, weak performance and challenging market conditions. Following the wider asset exchange between E.ON and RWE, npower became part of E.ON UK's business in January 2019. In November 2019, the business announced plans to remove more than 4,500 jobs and wind down the npower residential brand. Household customers were progressively transferred to E.ON Next, a new E.ON retail brand, during 2021. The npower name therefore no longer functions as a general household energy brand in the UK. Its continuing commercial identity is npower Business Solutions, operated through Npower Commercial Gas Limited within the E.ON group. This business supplies gas and electricity to large organisations and is described in the reference material as serving more than 20,000 businesses, including custom…
History
npower emerged from the restructuring of National Power at the beginning of the 2000s. In October 2000, National Power separated its overseas activities into International Power, while its UK consumer-facing operations became the consumer division of Innogy plc. The resulting business supplied electricity and gas in the increasingly competitive British energy market. Innogy expanded its regional-company portfolio in February 2001 by acquiring Yorkshire Electricity. It later sold Yorkshire Electricity's distribution operation to CE Electric UK in exchange for Northern Electric's supply business, a transaction that increased its emphasis on retail supply rather than electricity distribution. RWE, one of Germany's major energy groups, acquired Innogy in March 2002. Following the takeover, the UK supply business was renamed RWE npower, and the npower brand was adopted across the supply activities. The business served households and companies and later developed adjacent services. In February 2006, npower acquired a 19% stake in Telecom Plus, with the arrangement giving it access to management services in billing, customer service, metering, debt collection and administration and allowing a possible increase in its holding. In 2009, it expanded its energy-services presence by acquiring Superior Plumbing and SPI Group. These businesses supported social-housing customers and public-sector or commercial premises, while npower's Hometeam brand provided domestic boiler and central-heating services. The Telecom Plus-related assets were sold back to Utility Warehouse in November 2013 for £218 million, according to the cited account. The transaction strengthened Utility Warehouse's position among independent UK energy suppliers and prompted wider discussion about consolidation within the country's group of large energy companies. npower itself faced increasing operational and reputational pressure. Allegations about door-to-door selling practices led to an Ofgem fine in 2008, while customer-service criticism continued into the following decade. In 2013, campaigners and politicians challenged the company's tax position; npower responded that capital investment and associated allowances explained the reported outcome. The Fenton call-centre closure in 2014 eliminated roughly 480 positions. The company's financial and customer performance deteriorated further in the middle of the decade. It reported a £106 million loss in 2016, announced approximately 2,500 global job cuts and stated that it had lost 351,000 customers during 2015. The business attributed the difficulties in part to customer complaints and service problems. In December 2015, Ofgem required npower to make a £26 million settlement for failing to treat customers fairly. A corporate separation at RWE changed npower's place within the group. On 1 April 2016, RWE separated renewable energy, network and retail operations into Innogy SE. npower moved into Innogy and became Npower Limited. The power stations formerly operated by the wider npower business, including coal-, gas- and oil-fired assets, were assigned to RWE Generation UK plc, making clear that npower was principally a supply and services identity rather than the owner of those generation assets. In November 2017, Innogy and SSE announced a plan to combine npower's residential and business retail operations with SSE's British residential supply and home-services activities. The intended company was to be listed on the London Stock Exchange, with SSE planning to distribute most of its interest to shareholders and Innogy retaining the balance. The Competition and Markets Authority granted preliminary clearance in August 2018 and full clearance in October, but the transaction was abandoned in December. The companies cited the impact of the government price cap, weak business performance and challenging market conditions. The failure of the merger coincided with the broader E.ON-RWE asset exchange. npower became an E.ON UK subsidiary in January 2019. In the same year, the company announced extensive job reductions and plans to wind down its residential brand. Household customers were eventually migrated to E.ON Next during 2021. npower therefore ceased to be a standalone mass-market residential energy identity. Its surviving operation is npower Business Solutions, a commercial brand of Npower Commercial Gas Limited within the E.ON group. It continues to supply gas and electricity to large UK businesses, reported in the cited material as more than 20,000 organisations, while residential customers are served under E.ON Next.
- 2021
Residential customers migrate to E.ON Next
[1]E.ON completes the strategic shift of npower's residential customer base to E.ON Next, leaving the npower name focused on commercial energy.
- 2019
npower becomes part of E.ON UK
[1]Following the wider E.ON-RWE asset exchange, npower is transferred into E.ON UK's business.
- 2018
Proposed SSE merger receives regulatory clearance
[1]The Competition and Markets Authority grants preliminary and then full clearance to the proposed transaction.
- 2018
SSE and Innogy cancel the merger
[1]The proposed retail-energy combination is abandoned because of market conditions, the price cap and business-performance concerns.
- 2017
Proposed merger with SSE's retail business
[1]Innogy and SSE announce plans to combine npower's British retail operations with SSE's residential supply and home-services business.
- 2016
npower moves into Innogy SE
[1]RWE transfers its renewable-energy, network and retail businesses into Innogy SE; npower becomes Npower Limited within the new group.
- 2013
Telecom Plus-related businesses sold to Utility Warehouse
[1]npower sells two former Telecom Plus subsidiaries back to Utility Warehouse in a transaction reported at £218 million.
- 2009
Expansion of energy-services activities
[1]npower acquires Superior Plumbing and SPI Group, adding capabilities serving social housing, public buildings and commercial customers.
- 2006
Minority investment in Telecom Plus
[1]npower acquires a 19% stake in Telecom Plus and gains access to operational management services.
- 2002
RWE acquires Innogy
[1]RWE takes over Innogy and the UK supply business is renamed RWE npower, with npower becoming the principal supply brand.
Showing the 10 most recent.
Products and positioning
Historically positioned as one of the UK's major integrated household and business energy suppliers; now positioned primarily as a commercial energy supplier for large UK organisations.
Commercial energy supply
npower Business Solutions
The surviving commercial-facing npower brand supplies electricity and gas to large organisations across the United Kingdom. It serves business customers that require commercial energy procurement and account-management services, including customers transferred from other E.ON operations. The brand is distinct from E.ON Next, which handles the former residential npower customer base.
Residential energy · 2000
Residential electricity and gas supply
Historically, npower supplied electricity and gas to households throughout Great Britain and was considered one of the Big Six suppliers. This residential business was progressively transferred to E.ON Next in 2021, so household supply is no longer the active focus of the npower brand.
Home energy services
Hometeam
Hometeam was npower's home-services operation, providing support associated with boilers, central-heating systems and related repairs. It formed part of the brand's historical effort to extend beyond commodity energy supply into maintenance and domestic energy services.
Controversies
2015
Ofgem customer-treatment settlement
Ofgem ordered npower to pay a £26 million settlement over failures to treat customers fairly. The action followed sustained criticism of the supplier's customer service and complaint handling.
2013
Tax-avoidance criticism
Politicians and campaigners accused npower of avoiding tax. The company rejected the characterization and attributed its lower-than-expected tax payment to investment-related capital allowances.
2008
Door-to-door sales conduct allegations
An undercover newspaper investigation alleged that npower's door-to-door representatives misled potential customers and asked them to sign forms without clearly explaining that they were contracts. Ofgem subsequently fined the company £1.8 million.
Marketing campaigns
- 2013Tax-position campaign
United Kingdom
Labour MPs and the 38 Degrees campaign group criticized npower's reported tax position and encouraged public pressure, including calls for customers to switch suppliers.
Outcome. npower defended its position by pointing to higher UK capital investment and related capital allowances. The campaign contributed to public scrutiny but no specific customer campaign outcome is established in the supplied sources.
Brand decisions
2021
Migrate residential customers to E.ON NextStrategyBackground
E.ON was integrating the acquired residential customer base while simplifying its UK consumer-brand structure.
Action taken
Residential npower customers were transferred to E.ON Next, leaving the npower name concentrated in the business-energy market.
Aftermath
npower continued as npower Business Solutions for commercial customers rather than as a mass-market household supplier.
2019
Transfer to E.ON UKM&ABackground
The transfer followed the planned asset exchange between the German parent companies E.ON and RWE after the failed SSE transaction.
Action taken
npower became a subsidiary of E.ON UK in January 2019.
Aftermath
E.ON later wound down the residential npower brand, moved household customers to E.ON Next and retained npower primarily for commercial energy supply.
2017
Propose combination with SSE's retail businessM&ABackground
Innogy and SSE sought scale and a stronger position in the competitive British retail-energy market by combining their supply and home-services operations.
Action taken
The companies proposed merging npower's residential and business retail operations with SSE's British residential supply and home-services business.
Aftermath
Although the transaction received regulatory clearance in 2018, it was cancelled in December 2018 because of the price cap, weak performance and difficult market conditions.
2016
Separate retail operations from power generationStrategyBackground
RWE reorganized its businesses by placing renewable energy, network and retail activities in Innogy SE while keeping the relevant generation assets in RWE Generation UK.
Action taken
npower moved into Innogy SE and became Npower Limited, while coal-, gas- and oil-fired generation assets were assigned outside the npower supply company.
Aftermath
The npower identity became more clearly associated with energy supply and services rather than electricity generation.
Recent events
- 2021
Residential npower customers transferred to E.ON Next[1]
Product generation
E.ON moved npower's residential customers to the E.ON Next brand, leaving npower focused on commercial energy supply.
- 2019
npower announces major job reductions amid difficult retail conditions[1]
Leadership change
npower announced plans to cut approximately 900 jobs in January and later disclosed plans affecting more than 4,500 UK jobs as the residential business was prepared for integration into E.ON's operations.
- 2018
UK regulators clear the proposed SSE and npower combination[1]
M&A · Regulation
The proposed combination received preliminary Competition and Markets Authority clearance in August and full clearance in October, subject to the transaction proceeding.
- 2018
SSE and Innogy abandon proposed retail-energy merger[1]
M&A · Regulation
The proposed merger was cancelled in December after the companies cited the UK price cap, business performance and difficult market conditions.
- 2017
Innogy and SSE announce proposed UK retail-energy merger[1]
M&A
Innogy and SSE proposed combining npower's residential and business retail operations with SSE's British household energy-supply and home-services business.
- 2014
npower closes Fenton call centre[1]
Other
The company's Fenton call centre closed in June, resulting in approximately 480 job losses after the closure had been announced the previous December.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/npower · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled