Four energy firms ordered to pay £15m unpaid green taxes or face losing licences

Robin Hood Energy, Toto Energy, Gnergy, and Delta Gas and Power missed a deadline to make payments under the Renewables Obligation

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Four energy suppliers have been ordered to pay £14.7m in overdue green taxes by the end of the month or face having their licences revoked.

Energy watchdog Ofgem said on Tuesday that Robin Hood Energy, Toto Energy, Gnergy, and Delta Gas and Power missed a 1 September deadline to make payments under the Renewables Obligation.

Under the government scheme, energy suppliers must prove they have sourced a certain proportion of their electricity from renewable sources. They can either source this directly or pay generators of renewable energy for certificates that designate that they are responsible for a particular amount of green power supply.

If suppliers don’t have enough certificates, they must contribute a cash sum to a central fund administered by Ofgem which is distributed back to producers of renewable energy.

Failure to make the payments into the fund is seen as a warning sign that a supplier may be in financial difficulty. A number of small energy suppliers have gone bust in the past 18 months, prompting Ofgem to tighten up its rules for approving new entrants to the market.

Of the £14.7m that is overdue, Robin Hood Energy owes £9.4m, Toto Energy £4.6m, Gnergy £673,876 and Delta £91,937.

Robin Hood Energy is a non-profit supplier. It is owned by Nottingham City Council and has struggled financially. The council has invested around £40m into the company, which has yet to file accounts due on 31 July.

Mary Starks, executive director of consumers and markets at Ofgem, said: “The Renewables Obligation schemes provide important support to renewable electricity generators and play an important role in Great Britain's journey to a net zero-emission economy by 2050.

“Supplier failure to comply with the schemes undermines the integrity of the schemes and is unacceptable.

“It also adds to the costs of other suppliers who do meet their obligations as they have to absorb or make up any shortfall.”

A Toto Energy spokesman said: “We disagree with the reasons for their decision.

“We remain committed to meeting our all of our obligations and continuing to deliver excellent service to our customers.”

A spokesman for Robin Hood Energy said: “We arranged a meeting in August to discuss this matter with Ofgem and were advised that, as long as our Renewable Obligation Certificate payment is made by March 2020, which we have always planned to do, then this matter will be resolved.”