Ceased trading · January 2010

Southern Electric archive

Southern Electric ceased trading on 1 January 2010. Its customers were transferred to OVO Energy (via SSE) under Ofgem's Supplier of Last Resort scheme. This page is kept as a historical record.

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Founded 1990 Maidenhead, Berkshire

Ceased trading · 1 January 2010

Southern Electric no longer supplies UK households

Brand consolidated into SSE after the 1998 merger; subsequently absorbed into OVO Energy via the 2020 SSE acquisition. Customers were transferred to OVO Energy (via SSE) under Ofgem's Supplier of Last Resort (SoLR) scheme. This page is kept as a historical record. Information presented below was accurate at the time of original publication.

Founded

1990

Years on the UK market

About

Who is Southern Electric?

Registered as Southern Electric plc (legacy — merged into SSE in 1998), Southern Electric uses this legal name for Ofgem licence filings, contracts and any formal communications. The trading name customers see on bills is the shorter, more recognisable form.

The company is headquartered in Maidenhead, Berkshire, where it runs its senior management, customer operations and regulatory liaison with Ofgem.

Southern Electric was founded in 1990. The supplier operated under a domestic-supply licence until its closure, with a track record of customer service and billing publicly documented for the years it traded.

Southern Electric is part of the OVO Energy (since 2020, via SSE acquisition) group, which provides shared governance, financial backing and a broader pool of expertise in trading, hedging and regulatory work.

The company is regulated by Ofgem, the UK's energy regulator, and its complaint handling falls under the Energy Ombudsman alternative dispute resolution scheme.

Who owns Southern Electric?

Ownership: Privately owned
Listed: No
Parent: OVO Energy (since 2020, via SSE acquisition)

Timeline

Southern Electric — key dates

A short timeline of the Southern Electric brand — founding, milestones, regulatory events and the closure that brought it to an end.

1948
The Southern Electricity Board is established as part of the nationalisation of the UK electricity industry.
1990
Southern Electric plc is formed during the privatisation of the electricity industry under Margaret Thatcher's government.
1998
Southern Electric merges with Scottish Hydro-Electric plc to form Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE).
2010
Scottish and Southern Energy rebrands to SSE; the Southern Electric brand is progressively phased out.
2020
SSE's GB retail business is acquired by OVO Energy; legacy Southern Electric customers are now served by OVO.

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Common questions

Southern Electric — frequently asked questions

Brand consolidated into SSE after the 1998 merger; subsequently absorbed into OVO Energy via the 2020 SSE acquisition.

Existing customers were transferred to OVO Energy (via SSE) under Ofgem's Supplier of Last Resort (SoLR) scheme — supply was never interrupted.

Your supply has not been interrupted: under the SoLR scheme, your supply is automatically handed to the successor supplier. Log in to the successor's online portal as soon as possible to set up your account, confirm your bank details and download any final Southern Electric statements while the legacy website is still online.

You are not required to pay any exit fee to leave the deemed tariff. Once your account is set up, compare current deals through Selectra to find a cheaper plan that fits your usage.

Yes. Customer credit balances on accounts at the date of cessation are protected under Ofgem's SoLR scheme. The successor supplier (OVO Energy (via SSE)) is required to honour your credit balance. Confirm the balance in writing within the first 30 days to avoid disputes later.

Yes — outstanding debts owed to Southern Electric transfer to the administrator of the company's estate, not the SoLR. You may receive a written demand for the outstanding amount from the administrators. Verify any demand against your final Southern Electric statement before paying.

You can complain about the conduct of Southern Electric (mis-selling, billing errors, customer service) to the Energy Ombudsman, even after the supplier has ceased trading. For complaints about the SoLR transfer itself (delays, incorrect tariff), the route is the same — Ombudsman first, then Ofgem.