Viridian Group
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Energy |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK |
| Revenue | £977 million (2006) |
| £149 million | |
| £93.5 million | |
| Owner | I Squared Capital |
Number of employees | 1,503 (2006) |
| Subsidiaries |
Power NI Energia |
| Website | www.viridiangroup.co.uk |
Viridian Group plc is a Northern Ireland-based energy business with interests in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Viridian organises its business in two main groups: Power NI and Viridian Power & Energy.
Businesses
Viridian's strategy is strongly focused on Irish energy markets. Its businesses are organised in two main groups:Power NI and Viridian Power & Energy.[1]
Power NI
Power NI supplies nearly 800,000 homes and businesses in Northern Ireland with electricity.[2]
Power NI Power Procurement Business manages the group's power purchase agreements.
Power NI was the former customer supply business of Northern Ireland Electricity, known originally as NIE Supply and then after its separation from the rest of NIE, as NIE Energy. Both it and the Power Procurement Business "were separated from NIE on 1 November 2007 in accordance with the requirements of the 2003 EU Electricity Directive which required the independence of the distribution system operation function.".[3] In 2010 Viridian sold Northern Ireland Electricity, including the NIE name, to the Electricity Supply Board. As a result, NIE Energy was no longer allowed to use the NIE name, and it rebranded as Power NI on 25 July 2011.
Virdian Power & Energy
Viridian Power & Energy generates electricity through Huntstown power plant and Eco Wind Power, while Energia provides gas and electricity to commercial customers.
History
Viridian was formed in 1998 as a holding company for Northern Ireland Electricity plc, the purpose of the reorganisation was to "step up the move into unregulated markets and for expansion overseas."[4] NIE was a public utility which was privatised in 1993. Formerly a vertically integrated monopoly, NIE's power stations were demerged and sold prior to privatisation.
On 6 October 2006 Viridian's board agreed the acquisition of the group by ElectricInvest, a company owned by the international investment firm Arcapita. The acquisition, which valued Viridian at £1.62 billion, was completed on 8 December 2006.[2]
On 6 July 2010, Viridian agreed to sell Northern Ireland Electricity - including NIE Powerteam, but excluding NIE Energy - to the Electricity Supply Board in the Republic of Ireland. The acquisition was completed in December 2010.[5] ......
See also
- Energy policy of the United Kingdom
- Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
- Green electricity in the United Kingdom
- Electricity sector in Ireland
References
- ↑ "About us: Business structure". www.viridiangroup.co.uk. Viridian Group. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
- 1 2 "ESB sizes up North's power networks". Sunday Times (Irish ed.). 2010-04-25.
- ↑ http://www.viridiangroup.co.uk/default.aspx?CATID=219
- ↑ Buckley, Christine (1997-11-19). "NIE investors to share surprise £67m windfall". The Times.
- ↑ http://www.viridiangroup.co.uk/default.aspx?CATID=216&CID=1403