Last Updated : 24 January 2022
Has Bulb Energy gone bust?
Bulb Energy has gone into Special Administration.
Special Administration is a regime for dealing with the insolvency of large energy supply companies. It is designed to ensure continued, uninterrupted and safe operation of essential services while the company goes through the administration process. So, while Bulb Energy is technically insolvent, under these arrangements it is still operating on a “business as usual” basis.
What has changed is that he board of Directors has been replaced by the Administrators. The Administrators, having firstly stabilised the business, will now assess options for a rescue of the company, ideally as going concern. However, if that is not possible then alternative options will be considered. These might include a dissolution, compulsory liquidation or a credtors voluntary liquidation.
We will know more in due course, and hopefully no later than end March 2022.
Clearly, any energy supplier, with a single variable rate tariff that is subject to the Energy Price Cap was going to hurt financially when the cost of the energy they buy is way higher than the price they can sell it for. That’s simple Maths. The Energy Price Cap has already bankrupted 27 domestic energy suppliers in the past 12 months. Bulb Energy is now one of those casualties.
This Bulb Energy Review
In this review we try to answer the following questions. Who are Bulb Energy and where did they come from? What are they trying to achieve? How are they funded and by whom? What’s their corporate structure? What is their operational model? How much more funding will they need?
We have done a lot of digging around to try and answer these questions. In this Bulb Energy review we look at their company structure and history, product proposition, service rating, financials, funding and a whole lot more. The section on financials and funding sheds some light on the question. Why did Bulb Energy fail? We hope you find this review useful.
Our Verdict
Fast growing, renewable energy supplier with huge ambitions
Bulb is a newish renewable energy supplier that made a huge impact in the retail energy market in a very short period of time. Bulb Energy began taking on customers in Feb 2016. Since then, their growth has been truly phenomenal. They have grown their customer base to 1.7 million households racking up annual revenues of over £1.5 billion in just 5 years.
Just think about that for a moment. Annual revenues of £1.5 billion equates to £4 million a day, £171,000 per hour, £2,850 per minute or £47.50 per second 24/7/365. Wouldn’t we just love to have a business like that?
And that was them just getting started. Bulb Energy had big ambitions.
The Mission
“We’re on a mission to help 100 million people lower their bills and their carbon emissions by 2030. So we supply green energy as standard, with fair, transparent pricing, and technology to help our members manage and reduce their energy use.”
That would take them to £100bn+ in annual revenues making them (based on current turnover admittedly), the second largest UK company after BP. It implies they need to take on another 12.3m net new customers each year, for the next 8 years. That’s 7 times more each year than they acquired in the first 5 years. Put another way, they need to build 7 Bulbs a year for the next 8 years. Ambitious? Better get on with it. (We are assuming by people they are referring to members where each member is a household – we could be wrong).
Bulb claims to be…
“the fastest-growing company in Europe, providing 100% renewable electricity to homes across the UK, France, Spain and Texas and 100% carbon neutral gas in the UK.”
We don’t know where they got the fastest growing company in Europe badge from, but their growth rate has been very impressive indeed. So, we won’t argue with it.
Their growth has not been flawless. There have been customer service issues, fines, and minor accounting adjustments along the way. But by any standards you could say it has been exemplary.
On balance, we’ve happy to recommend Bulb Energy to our visitors and customers. If they make it out of the Administration process more or less intact, we would consider that positive for the overall energy market. Read on and we’ll explain why.
What was the secret of Bulb’s initial success?
As energy insiders who have followed the energy sector for a very, very long time, and done a lot of digging around and analysis, here are our thoughts on this.
It has been a combination of well thought through factors aligned with prevailing market conditions and consumer trends. In no particular order;
A simple, easily understandable consumer proposition
Bulb’s proposition strapline is “Simpler, Cheaper, Greener”. It is simple, catchy and easy to “get”.
Bulb has one simple, renewable, variable rate competitive tariff with no exit fees.
It has been riding on the back of a green energy trend with prices for renewable energy falling.
All supported by an easy to remember name, a simple website and clever marketing.
Driven by big ambitions
“We’re on a mission to help 100 million people lower their bills and their carbon emissions by 2030”.
And they are prepared to rack up huge losses during the growth phase – which helps a lot for a growth company.
Backed by significant financing
Bulb Energy has raised £66m in equity funding (including £60m from institutional investors) and £85 million in debt finance ( £30m of which has since been repaid).
With some clever and aggressive marketing
Key to this has been Bulb’s affiliate program (currently suspended) which pays existing customers (Bulb calls them members) a £50 referral fee (£25 for electricity only) for each new customer they bring in. On top of that the new customer also gets the same £50 cash bonus for a dual fuel customer). That’s £100 for each new signup. It’s a win-win for the new and existing member. But It is a very expensive way to acquire new customers, and significantly more expensive than Bulb using an energy price comparison website. However, it does have some potentially important advantages.
- It rapidly spreads the Bulb name to potential customers (usually coming with a recommendation to the friends and family of the member).
- It drives positive reviews. Existing members wanting to make a quick buck have a strong incentive to leave 5* reviews on the company to encourage others to switch to it.
- It should also help drive direct to site acquisitions through brand exposure.
Supported by weak pro-supplier regulation
Yes, that’s our old friends at Ofgem who thought it was a good idea to drop market entry requirements to zero and to let any man and his dog have a crack at being an energy supplier. To be clear, there has never any question over whether Bulb Energy was fit for purpose; they were (and are) and their track record speaks for itself. But in a market environment where energy price comparison websites were required to provide free listings to any and all energy suppliers, Bulb would clearly also have benefited.
And let’s not forget the founders…
Clearly none of this can happen unless you have founders and leaders who know what they are doing, and are prepared to put their proverbials on the line.…(or can it?). It has not all been plain sailing but, so far, Amit and Hayden seemed to have played a blinder.
Has Bulb’s luck run out?
Has Bulb ridden too many perfect waves? Will the next big wave wipe them out or take them crashing onto the rocks. Unfortunately it has for now.
About Bulb
Bulb Energy review – Company Description
Bulb is a super-fast-growing supplier of renewable electricity and carbon offset gas, mainly to residential homes in the UK. It has recently established operations to supply renewable electricity to homes in France, Spain and Texas (USA).
Bulb was founded by entrepreneurs Amit Gudka and Hayden Wood in October 2014. It raised its first round of financing (via its parent company Simple Energy Limited) in 2015. It raised £150,000 from the founders (Feb 2015) and further £1.05 million (Apr-Jul 2015) from private investors (essentially a friends and family round).
Bulb launched its first energy tariff in the UK in Feb 2016.
Since then, Bulb has grown to become the 7th largest energy supplier in the UK. According to Ofgem data, as at July 2021, Bulb Energy had 2.57 million customer accounts. This comprises 1.09 million Bulb Energy gas accounts and 1.48 million Bulb electricity accounts. This implies a minimum of 1.48 million households served, which would be flat to down on the year earlier.
But Bulb is not stopping there. Bulb Energy is on a stated mission “to help 100 million people lower their bills and their carbon emissions by 2030.” That’s BIG and its bold.
The Company operates from swanky new offices at 155 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3TQ. The lease on the property was signed in Jan 2019, and Bulb moved into the property in July 2019.
Bulb Energy is signed up to the Warm Home Discount scheme.
They are also is signed up to the Energy Switch Guarantee.
Bulb energy review – prices and tariffs
Bulb offers one simple variable rate tariff called Vari-Fair. The simplicity and clarity of its product offering has been one of the reasons for the phenomenal success of the business. The tariff is available for customers who want to pay by Monthly Direct Debit or via prepayment meter.
Bulb’s Vari-Fair tariff offers 100% renewable electricity and 100% carbon neutral gas as standard.
Bulb aims to make its Vari-Fair tariff one of the most competitive in the market.
Online account management supplemented with “nifty” tools to manage your account (their description – not ours) has always been part of the Bulb offering.
You can learn a whole lot more about Vari-Fair here.
How did Bulb energy prices change in 2021?
They went up. A lot.
As with most energy suppliers caught between massively rising wholesale energy prices on the one side, and an immovable energy price cap on the other, Bulb Energy had to push its energy prices up to the maximum level permitted by the cap. It is inevitable that those prices will have to go up again on 1 April 2022.
Details of Bulb’s energy price changes in 2021 (and all earlier years) can be found on the Bulb Vari-Fair page.
To see what is likely to happen to Bulb energy prices in future, please check out our frequently updated energy bills forecast.
Review of Bulb’s renewable energy
Renewable Electricity
Bulb’s energy tariffs offer 100% renewable electricity as standard, as well as 100% carbon neutral gas. Did we already say that…?
The renewable electricity offered by Bulb is generated from wind (78%), solar (18%) and hydro (4%) generators across the UK. Bulb buys only a very small proportion of its electricity directly from generators (4.5% in 2020). The rest is purchased on the wholesale market, and matched by Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin certificates (REGOs). That clearly leaves Bulb significantly exposed to movements in volatile wholesale energy markets.
100% carbon neutral gas
Bulb offers carbon neutral gas partly from buying renewable gas resources (3%) with the balance being carbon offset gas. Renewable green gas comes from food and farm waste. Even at only 3%, that still makes Bulb of the largest buyers of green gas in the UK. Carbon offsets are bought by supporting carbon reduction projects around the world.
Bulb Energy review of B Corp Certification
Bulb Energy was the first energy supplier in the UK to become a certified B Corp certified (and probably still is the only one).
Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. Basically, it is for businesses to show / prove that they are in business as a force for social and environmental good.
Charitable donations
And if that wasn’t enough, Bulb Energy donates £1.00 for every customer sign up to the charity Trees for Cities. It donates another £1 to the Bulb Foundation, which makes grants to charities and social enterprises tackling the climate crisis. In the year to Mar 2020, they paid out £2m to these charities.
So, all round nice guys on a mission to save the planet.
Bulb Energy Review – Fuel Mix Disclosure
All suppliers are required to provide information about the mix of fuels they use to generate the electricity they supply to their customers. They also need to disclose the environmental impact of this fuel mix. This information is known as the Fuel Mix Disclosure and is published annually.
Bulb’s Fuel Mix for the period 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 in shown in the Table below.
| Energy Source | Bulb Energy | UK Average |
|---|---|---|
| Source: Bulb, BEIS energyscanner.com | ||
| Coal | 0% | 2.7% |
| Natural gas | 0% | 38.2% |
| Nuclear | 0% | 16.1% |
| Renewables | 100% | 40.3% |
| Other fuels | 0% | 2.7% |
| CO2 emissions (g/kWh) | 0 | 182 |
| High-level radioactive waste (g/kWh) | 0 | 0.007 |
Bulb’s Fuel Mix disclosure for all earlier years can be found here…
Bulb Customer Service Rating
Trustpilot
Bulb has a Trustpilot rating of 4.5 based on over 75,000 reviews, with 85% excellent. On the surface, that’s pretty damn good for an energy supply business.
However, there are a couple of factors worth mentioning.
Firstly, there is a strong incentive, within Bulb’s rather punchy referral program, for existing customers (members) to leave 5* reviews. I mean, who would recommend switching to an energy supplier with a 1* reviews, right? We have no idea how big this effect is, but is definitely helps. Some of the short and sharp one-line comments seem to fall into this category.
Secondly, there has been a recent pick-up in 1* ratings. Many of these relate to recent increases in energy prices and some disproportionately large increases in direct debit payments.
Ofgem
According to data from energy regulator Ofgem, of the larger energy suppliers, Bulb was the second most complained-about energy supplier in Q2 2021. Growing quickly does have its growth pains.
MoneySavingExpert
But, but, but, what is moneysavingexpert Martin Lewis’ review of Bulb Energy?
It has been reported that Martin Lewis has branded Bulb ‘outrageous’ for their recent direct debit demands during the energy crisis. To be fair, Martin Lewis is always outraged about something or other. It can’t be good for his blood pressure but that is his day job. However, on this issue he does have a point.
Why Bulb is hiking direct debits, taking well-deserved flak for it, and the extent to which Bulb uses customer deposits to fund itself, is covered below.
energyscanner.com verdict
Having said all that, and notwithstanding the current financial difficulties the company is experiencing, Bulb Energy has received decent to very good reviews from a range of customer-based sources over the years. Furthermore, it has a strong reputation within the energy industry. Based on our experience in dealing with Bulb Energy, we have been happy to recommend them (Hayden – you’re welcome). If they get through the Special Administration as a going concern we expect that our recommndation will hold. Let us know if you think different. Leave your comments below.
Bulb Energy Review – Company Structure
We consider 2 companies.
BULB ENERGY LIMITED and SIMPLE ENERGY LIMITED
SIMPLE ENERGY LIMITED is the parent company for the group which includes;
- The UK operating company – Bulb Energy Limited
- A USA holding company – Bulb Energy US Inc
- The USA operating company – Bulb US LLC
- The French operating company – Bulb France SAS
- The Spanish operating company – Bulb Energia Iberica SL
- And an Irish based financing entity – Bulb Finance DAC
Phew!
Since the non-UK companies in the group generate negligible revenue, they are not considered here.
| Company Name | BULB ENERGY LTD |
|---|---|
| Source: Companies House, Ofgem, energyscanner.com | |
| Company Number | 08469555 |
| Registered Office Address | 155 Bishopsgate, London, England, EC2M 3TQ |
| Date of incorporation | 2 April 2013 |
| Directors (Current) (2) | Joe RICHARDSON Hayden WOOD |
| Directors (Previous) | Amit GUDKA (resigned 1 June 2021) |
| Supply licence(s) granted | Gas; 27 Jul 2015 (under name of Hanbury Energy Limited) Electricity; 9 Feb 2016 (under the name of Regent Power) |
| Began selling energy to domestic consumers | Mar 2016 |
In addition to being the ultimate holding company, Simple Energy Limited is also the financing entity for the group – the bank so to speak. They raise all the cash used to fund the operating activities of Bulb in the UK and other overseas markets. They also act as the employer for the employees of Bulb Energy Limited, which is a bit odd but….what do we know.
| Company Name | SIMPLE ENERGY LIMITED |
|---|---|
| Source: Companies House, Ofgem, energyscanner.com | |
| Company Number | 09249540 |
| Registered Office Address | 155 Bishopsgate, London, England, EC2M 3TQ |
| Date of incorporation | 6 October 2014 |
| Directors (Current) (2) | Amit GUDKA David SCOTT John WELLS Hayden WOOD |
| Directors (Previous) | Philip Jerome SUTTERBY (resigned 1 Sep 2015) |
Bulb Energy Review – Financials
Here we review the financials of Bulb Energy Limited since 2017. Although Bulb began trading in 2016, the scale of their growth means earlier year comparables quickly fade into decimal places and add little value to the comparison. Changing year-end reporting periods in 2016 / 2017 also hasn’t helped.
Bulb Energy in the UK generates 100% of the revenues of the group. Therefore, from a profit and loss perspective, the accounts of Bulb Energy Limited and its parent Simple Energy are, to all intents and purposes, identical. We therefore only consider those of Bulb Energy.
As well as being the parent company, Simple Energy Limited is also the financing entity for the group, raising debt and equity to finance group operations. The balance sheets will therefore differ to the extent that Bulb Energy only has a notional £100 in equity capital, whereas Simple Energy’s Balance Sheet will reflect all fund-raisings. Consequently, we present both.
Finally, only the cashflow statements of Simple Energy are summarised below (as Bulb Energy Limited doesn’t report them).
Bulb Energy review of Profit and Loss Account
The table below summarises the profit and loss for Bulb Energy Limited for the 4 years to end 31 March 2020.
The key take-aways from the profit and loss numbers are the following.
- Revenue growth has been spectacular (8x in just 2 years).
- There have been some economies of scale evident, as admin expenses have grown less quickly than revenues (6.7x over 2 years). We suspect Bulb could have achieved greater economies of scale but was growing its cost base in anticipation of continued growth in customer numbers.
- Bulb Energy was getting reasonably close to break-even in 2019/2020.
However….
- The gross margin is all over the place, ranging from a perfectly reasonable 10%+ down to just 1% in 2018/2019.
In their financial statements Bulb say…”In order to mitigate the risk of wholesale price movements, the Company operates a variable tariff model… This is also means the Company is able to more accurately forecast its margins and cash flow in advance.” If that is the case, then one would have expected more stability in the gross margin. A gross margin of just 1% in a volatile commodity market is a little scary.
| Year ended 31 March | 2017 (6 month period) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Companies House | ||||
| Customer accounts (000's) | 25 | 326 | 1,139 | 1,700 |
| Income statement (£m) | ||||
| Revenue | 10 | 183 | 823 | 1,521 |
| Gross profit | 1.1 | 7.8 | 8.4 | 177 |
| Gross margin (%) | 11.1% | 4.3% | 1.0% | 11.6% |
| Administrative expenses | 3.1 | 35.4 | 136.2 | 236 |
| Operating profit (loss) | (2.0) | (27.6) | (127.7) | (59) |
| Operating profit (%) | -19.9% | -15.1% | -15.5% | -3.9% |
| Profit (loss) before tax | (2.0) | (28.0) | (129.2) | (63) |
| Balance Sheet (£m) | ||||
| Fixed Assets | 0.06 | 0.25 | 0.75 | 4 |
| Current assets | 2.2 | 50.8 | 140 | 293 |
| Current Liabilities | (5.0) | (81.8) | (266) | (466) |
| Net current assets | (2.8) | (31) | (126) | (173) |
| Non current liabilities | 0 | 0 | (35) | (54) |
| Net assets | (2.7) | (30.8) | (160) | (223) |
| Capital and Reserves (£m) | ||||
| Share capital | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Profit and loss account | (2.7) | (30.8) | (160) | (223) |
| Shareholders Funds | (2.7) | (30.8) | (160) | (223) |
Bulb Energy review of Balance Sheet
The table above summarises the Bulb Energy Limited balance sheet for the 4 years to end 31 March 2020.
The table below summarises the balance sheet of the parent company, Simple Energy Limited, for the same period.
| Year ended 31 March | 2017 (6 month period) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Companies House | ||||
| Balance Sheet (£m) | ||||
| Fixed Assets | 0.19 | 0.31 | 0.8 | 4 |
| Current assets | 2.35 | 52.8 | 143.7 | 296 |
| Current Liabilities | (4.5) | (77.3) | (203) | (398) |
| Net current assets | (2.2) | (24.5) | (59.3) | (102) |
| Non current liabilities | 0 | 0 | (34.7) | (54) |
| Net assets | (2) | (24.2) | (93.2) | (152) |
| Capital and Reserves (£m) | ||||
| Share capital | 0.12 | 0.16 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Share premium account | 1.16 | 6.9 | 67 | 67 |
| Profit and loss account | (3.3) | (31.3) | (161) | (219) |
| Shareholders Funds | (2.0) | (24.2) | (93) | (152) |
The main difference between the balance sheets of Simple Energy and Bulb Energy, is that Simple Energy has raised £67m in equity financing. This is refelected in the higher Net Assets figure and less negative Shareholders Funds figure. Other differences exist but they are not material.
The key takeaways from the balance sheet numbers are the following.
- Bulb is a very asset light business. There is no real tangible asset backing to this business.
- The company and group have always operated with negative net current assets and negative net assets. The current ratio has fluctuated from from a high of 63% to a low of 44%. The current ratio is a liquidity ratio that measures a company’s ability to pay short-term obligations or those due within one year. A current ratio below 1 indicates that a company would not be able to repay its current liabilities in the event of distress, defult or liquidation. Bulb Energy and Simple Energy have never operated with a current ratio even close to 1.
So, if Bulb Energy is unprofitable and has negative Net Assets (at operating company and group level) then surely it must be going bust? If not already there?
Not quite.
We also need to consider cashflows.
Bulb Energy review of CashFlow Statement
As Simple Energy Limited raises and controls the cashflows to Bulb Energy, then it is the Simple Energy cashflow statement that matters. Which is just as well, because Bulb Energy Limited does not publish one. This is shown in the Table below.
| Year ended 31 March | 2017 (6 month period) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Analysis: energyscanner | ||||
| Cashflow Statement (£m) | ||||
| Operating activities | (2) | (28) | (129) | (63) |
| Increase in debtors | (2) | (40) | (80) | (68) |
| Increase in creditors | 4 | 43 | 155 | 195 |
| Other operations | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Net cash from operations | 0 | (24) | (53) | 72 |
| Cashflow from investing activities | 0 | (0.2) | (0.6) | (3) |
| Cashflow from financing activities | ||||
| Ordinary shares issued | 0.05 | 5.8 | 60.4 | 0 |
| New secured loans | 0 | 29.5 | 35 | 20 |
| Loan set up fees | 0 | 0 | 0 | (1) |
| Repayment of bank loans | 0 | 0 | (30) | 0 |
| Interest paid | 0 | (0.45) | (1.34) | (4) |
| Net cash from financing activities | 0.05 | 34.9 | 64 | 15 |
| Net increase in cash and cash equivalents | 0.08 | 10.2 | 10.5 | 84 |
| Cash at beginning of year | 0.26 | 0.33 | 10.5 | 21 |
| Cash at end of year | 0.33 | 10.5 | 21 | 105 |
| Source: Companies House |
The key takeaways from the Cashflow Statement are the following.
OK, this is the important bit so please pay attention.
Cash Burned
- Cashflow from operatiting activities is invariably negative. This is becasue Bulb Energy has been racking up big losses. Since 1 Sep 2018, operating activities have sucked up £222 million in cash.
- Investing activities are minimal bordering on negligible. At £4 million over 4 years, they represent just 0.2% of revenue.
Cash Raised
- To balance the books Simple Energy has rasied both equity and debt finance. Equity funding has totalled £67 million including £60 million from institutional investors DST Global and Magnetar Capital at an apparent valuation of over £300 million. Given the various share types, splits and reclassifications, valuation is not a simple case of grossing up £60 million for X% of the company to get a valuation of Y. But for those interested, this is a decent article on the Bulb Energy £60 million financing round.
- Bulb has raised £85 million in secured debt of which £30 million has been repaid (so £55 million debt facility remaining).
- Overall, Bulb Energy has raised a net £114 million of debt and equity finance over the past 4 years.
Cash Pile
- Over the same period the Bulb Energy cash-pile has grown from £260k to £105 million.
All good so far?
Well possibly not. Some of you will no doubt have noticed that, despite buring through £226 million on operating losses and some small investment, Bulb has nevertheless manged to amass £105 million in cash. And it has done this whilst raising only £114 million in external finance. What’s up with the missing £217 million, give or take? Where is the magic money tree?
Working Capital – the magic money tree
The answer is in working capital.
Over the past 4 years Bulb Energy has increased its creditors (people it owes money to) by £397 million. However its debtors (people who owe it money) has only gone up by £190 million. The difference of £207 million is being used mainly to fund its operating losses, with the balances sitting in a cosy bank account.
How does that work? Is Bulb Energy simply not paying its bills?
Not at all.
Given the different payment terms typical within the retail energy business, Bulb Energy can collect cash from their customers essentially in advance (on the day you come on supply but before you have used any actual energy). However they do not need to pay their suppliers until many months down the line. On balance for each new customer, their cashflow increases.
Off course, there comes a point when, for each customer, that cashflow will balance out (cash in = cash out). And when that customer leaves Bulb, it will reverse (no more cash in, but bills still left to pay).
So the positive working cashflow model works beautifully when a company is growing, and especially when a company is growing quickly. It is, no doubt, the main reason why we have had so many fly-by-night operators jump into the energy supply market in the UK. And Ofgem, like a coked-up doorman at a dodgy nightclub, has simply waved them through.
When the Magic Money Tree Wants its Money Back
But there are limits to how far you can push this.
When a company stops growing its customer base (like now when there is NO switching activity), liabilities start to stack up and collide against a much smaller asset pile? The old bills need to be paid but their is no new customer credit coming in to pay them. That becomes the point at which, even profitable companies, need to raise money or fold.
Also there are regulatory limits as to how much of customers money energy suppliers can hold onto. Once you hit that limit, the magic money tree (at customer level) shrivels and dies.
Bulb Energy Review – Sources of Funding
So who has been funding Bulb Energy up to now, and by how much?
There has been a lot said about the outrageous behavious of Bulb unjustifiably hiking direct debits, in Bulb reviews from martin lewis, Bulb reviews from moneysavingexpert and others. Most importantly though, it has been actual customers venting their frustration on TrustPilot reviews. In the circumstances we can understand why Bulb Energy is calling in customer cash. It is not pleasant for the customer, but for Bulb Energy it is a fight for survival. When that happens certain standards tend to slip. Think about trying to get your money back from EasyJet for a cancelled flight in April 2020. We’ve been there, done that, got the badge. The airline industry of spring 2020 is a directly relevant analogy to the retail energy sector today .
For those who are concerned that their increased direct debits are being used to fund Bulb Energy, this might interest you.
Over the last 4 years, Bulb Energy has not been principally funded by banks or by rich equity investors. Instead, 63% of the funding came from its customers. See the table below.
How Customer Money Funds Energy Suppliers
| Funding Needed | Amount (£m) | |
|---|---|---|
| Analysis: energyscanner.com | ||
| Operating deficit | 222 | |
| Increase in cash | 105 | |
| Investments | 4 | |
| Total Funding Requirement | 331 | |
| Funded by | ||
| Equity | 66 | 20% |
| Debt (net of redemptions) | 55 | 17% |
| Working Capital | 210 | 63% |
| Total Funding Provided | 331 | |
| Source: Companies House |
For anyone concerned that Bulb is using increased customer direct debits to fund their own business…We’ve got news for you. They have been doing it all along. They just need a little bit more cash righ now.
If this sounds harsh on Bulb Energy, we apologise. It not meant to be. This funding model is a feature of the UK energy industry. Bulb. unlike many of its less reputable peers, is intent on building a serious energy supply business. Its founders have put their own money on the table and this has been backed by serious investors with risk capital. We just thought you should know.
Is Bulb Energy a technology company?
A strange question to ask coming on the back of a review of financial statements. But there is some logic to this.
Bulb Energy has been described in the media as “the fastest growing tech company in the UK”. There is no question that Bulb Energy is fast growing. But what makes it a tech company? (Almost) all companies use modern tech in their businesses. Does just using tech count or do you actually need to be a business that builds, owns, operates and sells tech?
The reason we ask is that, in our analysis, we couldn’t help noticing that Bulb Energy spends less than 0.2% of revenue on investments (across the board). That’s less than £1 spent for every £500 that comes in. Doesn’t seem like much of a research based tech business to us.
Thinking of switching to Bulb Energy?
Unfortunately, at this point, you can’t. No energy suppliers are taking on customers onto default (price cap) tariffs on which they are guaranteed to lose a ton of money.
When the switching market, gets back to normal, we will let you know the best way to compare and switch.
In the meantime, here’s an ad. We hope it’s relevant.
That’s it, you’re up to date…
Although getting back to the question at the very top of this article… Is Bulb Energy going bust?
We are working on that analysis right now and will have an article posted for you in the next 2-3 days. Stay tuned!
Read more …
– Bulb Energy Standard Tariff
– Bulb Energy Fuel Mix
– Energy Bills Forecast
– Guide to Renewable Energy
– Bulb Energy Contact Details
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