What Great British Energy Actually Is
Great British Energy sounds like it should be on your switching list, right next to Octopus or EDF. It isn’t. Great British Energy, usually shortened to GB Energy or GBE, is a publicly owned company set up by the government to invest in clean power projects, not a licensed supplier you can buy your gas and electricity from.
Think of it more like a state investment fund for energy infrastructure than a shop counter. It puts public money into things like offshore wind, solar farms and local clean power schemes, working alongside private companies rather than selling directly to your front door. The government’s own description of Great British Energy is clear on this: it’s an investment company, not a retailer.
Can You Switch to Great British Energy?
No. There’s no Great British Energy tariff, no GB Energy customer number and no bill with its name on it, because it doesn’t supply energy to homes at all. If a website or a text message offers you a “Great British Energy deal,” treat it the same way you’d treat any other unsolicited energy cold call: with suspicion.
Your gas and electricity still come from a licensed retail supplier, the likes of British Gas, Octopus Energy, E.ON Next or one of the smaller players. Switching between those suppliers works exactly as it always has. Great British Energy simply isn’t one of the options on that list.
Why the Name Causes So Much Confusion
The mix up is understandable. Great British Energy launched with a lot of national fanfare, headquartered in Aberdeen, and its name was deliberately built to sound reassuring and homegrown, a bit like the brand names suppliers themselves use.
Add in the fact that most people first hear about it through a headline about bills or energy prices, and it’s an easy leap to assume it’s a new place to shop for a cheaper deal. It isn’t that. It’s closer to a sovereign wealth fund with a very specific, narrow job.
There’s also an older, unrelated company called British Energy that used to run the UK’s nuclear power stations before it was bought out back in 2009. Great British Energy has no connection to that business either, despite the similar sounding name. Two different eras, two different organisations, neither of which will ever send you a bill.
Great British Energy at a glance
- A publicly owned company, not a licensed household energy supplier.
- Backed by up to £8.3 billion of government funding over this Parliament.
- Invests in and co funds clean power projects such as offshore wind and solar.
- Headquartered in Aberdeen, working alongside private developers rather than competing with suppliers.
- You cannot open an account, get a bill, or switch to it, because it doesn’t sell energy to homes.
What Great British Energy Does With the Money
Great British Energy’s job is to co invest in projects that need a public partner to get off the ground: a stake in a clean power development the private sector might otherwise call too risky. Public money goes in first, private money follows, and more of that generation gets built here rather than overseas.
Some of its early work has gone into rooftop solar for schools and hospitals, and partnerships on offshore wind supply chains. None of that shows up as a discount on your bill tomorrow. It’s a long game, aimed at UK energy security and the wider mix of where our power comes from, not a short term saving for any one household.
Roo would call it the boring bit happening in the background while suppliers get on with actually selling you power. That’s not a criticism, it’s just a different job.
Great British Energy, Ofgem and Your Supplier: Who Does What?
It helps to separate the three names people often blur together. Ofgem is the industry regulator, the body that sets the energy price cap and polices supplier conduct. Your supplier, one of the household names on our list of the big energy providers, is who actually bills you and takes your meter readings.
Great British Energy sits apart from both. It doesn’t regulate anyone and it doesn’t bill anyone. According to the government’s own description, it’s an investment vehicle backing clean power projects, reporting to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero rather than acting as a market player you’d ever deal with directly.
Which brings us to the part that actually moves your bill. If Great British Energy won’t lower what you pay, the lever that will is the same one it’s always been: checking whether you’re on your supplier’s standard variable rate and comparing it against what else is out there. Suppliers count on inertia, and doing nothing is usually the most expensive option on the table.
A fixed deal, a better standing charge, or simply confirming you’re not sitting on an old, uncompetitive tariff can make a real difference over a year. None of that involves Great British Energy at any point, it’s a conversation entirely between you and a licensed retail supplier. Our guide to switching supplier walks through exactly how.
Frequently asked questions about Great British Energy
- Is Great British Energy the same as the old British Gas or British Energy company?
- No. British Gas and the former British Energy were private commercial suppliers. Great British Energy is a newly created, publicly owned investment company with a different job and no link to either brand.
- Will Great British Energy lower my bills directly?
- Not directly, and not quickly. Its investments are aimed at long term UK energy security and clean power capacity, which may support prices over time, but it doesn’t set or discount what you pay today.
- I’ve had a call or text offering a Great British Energy tariff. Is it real?
- Treat it as a scam. Great British Energy has no consumer tariffs, so any offer using its name to sell you a deal is misusing the brand, not representing it.
- Who actually owns and runs Great British Energy?
- It’s wholly owned by the UK government and operationally independent, headquartered in Aberdeen, with its own board overseeing where the funding gets invested.
- Where can I check who my actual energy supplier is?
- Your most recent bill or online account will name your licensed supplier. That’s the company to compare against others, not Great British Energy.
