Centrica chief vows to ‘strip out the rubbish’ to revive group’s fortunes. O’Shea admitted that he wouldn’t have designed Centrica’s business model “if I had had a blank sheet of paper.” He insisted, however, that the company still had “unique opportunities” to participate in the energy transition as the UK and Ireland strived to stop contributing to climate change by 2050. British Gas was an early investor in offshore wind 20 years ago, but Centrica has since sold its wind farms as well as large fossil fuel power plants to focus on businesses with customer contact, including including energy supply and “smart” home devices such as a thermostat that can be controlled via an app. Its oil and gas joint venture is also on the block. Centrica is discussing with the government how to finance the conversion of Britain’s largest gas storage site to hydrogen, as its new chief executive faces pressure to prove the company will benefit from the transition to a cleaner energy. Chris O’Shea also sees an opportunity in trading the electricity produced by wind farms on behalf of their owners as he attempts to revive the fortunes of the more than 200-year-old company, better known as the owner. from British Gas.
FT 21st Feb 2021 read more »
