List of Renewable Energy Companies in the UK

Meeting climate change targets has shifted the emphasis onto so-called green energy technologies.

Governments and energy companies are investing in producing more energy for electricity and gas from alternative and renewable sources. Together we can improve our carbon footprint while generating the power required for the planet.

When you ask for a list of renewable energy companies in the UK, some of the existing leading and largest organisations appear. But recently, additional suppliers have entered the industry by only concentrating on renewable energy alone.

What is Renewable Energy?

Renewable energy encompasses producing energy, specifically electricity, from naturally replenished sources. These sources include wind power, water or hydroelectric power, waste, solar (from the sun), rain and heat.

The most recent report by the National Grid shows that renewables produced 38.2% of the UK’s energy requirements. That’s up from just 2% in 1991 and 14.6% in 2013.

Technologies certainly exist to harness the power of all these natural resources, with massive investments being made in the UK to meet demanding targets for CO2 emission reductions. Meeting these and other targets requires more energy generated from renewable sources.

List of Companies Offering Renewable Energy Tariffs

These UK companies have direct investments in or are developing solutions for renewable energy. The companies below own or buy the resources and then resell them under their brands.

• Ecotricity is a UK company that has numerous owned wind farms and solar parks.
• The Good Energy Company does have its own wind farms but purchases from over 1,700 independent renewable generators.
• Green Energy UK has a 100% renewable energy fuel mix but does not generate its own electricity.
• In partnership with Ebico, Octopus Energy has a mix of owner-operated and purchased renewable energy sources.
• E.ON Next uses a mix of owned biomass facilities and bought-in renewables to supply residential customers with 100% renewable tariffs.
• EDF Energy is the UK’s largest producer of zero-carbon electricity and has a range of compatible tariffs.
• ScottishPower has green tariffs using their range of wind farms throughout Scotland. They offer other non-green products that use gas, coal or other fuels in their mix.

Many other companies in the UK manufacture renewable energy-generating equipment such as wind turbines, solar panels, Biomass and Hydro-power, but you can only purchase energy indirectly from them.

Additionally, many small businesses and homeowners generate their electricity, some selling it into the national grid via feed-in tariffs or the new Smart Export Guarantee.

Companies Offering Green Tariffs by Purchasing Energy From Elsewhere

At the time of writing, the following companies offer consumers and businesses the option of a 100% green tariff, but they purchase their supplies from other companies rather than using their own sources:

• OVO Energy has only one tariff with traceable renewable sources that has a £10 a month premium over the variable prices. OVO incorporates SSE, Southern Electric and SWALEC customers.
• Although British Gas is investing over £1.2 billion into renewables and already has operational wind farms, much of their tariffs use offset purchasing.

If you want a 100% renewable green tariff, check the terms and conditions carefully because most companies are just offsetting what you use from traditional brown energy sources rather than providing you directly from renewable sources. Many companies are thought to be entering this space. With the increase in the amount of power and technologies influencing this area, more options should be available, with prices set to remain stable over the long term.