Energy giant SSE Plc is to acquire Belfast headquartered Phoenix Supply, the largest natural gas supplier in Northern Ireland, for 19.1m. The company, which has 130,000 customers, is being acquired from its private equity owner Terra Firma. SSE has agreed a deal through its wholly-owned subsidiary Airtricity Energy Supply (Northern Ireland) to buy the entire issued share capital in Phoenix Supply and to purchase Phoenix Energy, which supplies gas in the Republics deregulated commercial supply market. Alistair Phillips-Davies is Generation and Supply Director of SSE.

Centrica Energy is planning to build a new green power station at Scawby Brook, North Lincolnshire as part of its ongoing expansion. The development would create up to 50 full-time jobs as well as 500 during the building phase. The proposed site is next to an existing Centrica gas-fired power station.

Southern Electric plans to create 200 new jobs in its customer service centre in Hampshire as it expands its annual energy review for customers.

More than 500 British Gas workers in Southampton face redundancy as the company announce they will be closing their call centre. profits from supplying gas and electricity to residential homes fell 30 per cent last year to £522million.