SQE secures £25 million loan to expand UK business

SQE has secured a £25 million corporate group loan from Royal Bank of Scotland to support the business electricity supplier's expansion in the UK commercial market.

The company, formerly known as Squeaky Energy, said the funding will back continued growth and further development of its offer for large multi-site organisations. SQE supplies industrial and commercial customers and has recently expanded its client base among major UK businesses.

It has doubled the volume of energy under supply and tripled the number of meters it serves. Recent additions include Marston's, with about 1,300 sites, and a major UK supermarket group with more than 900 stores.

Those customer wins have taken its contracted order book to 4.75 TWh of annual electricity demand. Its wider customer roster includes Vertu Motors, Tarmac, David Lloyd Leisure and Moto.

Growth plans

SQE operates in a commercial energy market that has become more fragmented, with more generators, flexibility assets and routes to buy electricity. It works with businesses, generators and brokers seeking to manage that complexity through a more flexible and transparent supply model.

Alongside customer growth, the company has widened the pool of generators and wholesale partners available through its marketplace. Uniper has joined Danske Commodities and Vitol on the platform, alongside a growing number of smaller independent generators.

SQE has also expanded its proprietary technology platform, SQEos, and updated its flexibility offer to include on-site generation and storage alongside demand response. The changes are intended to give businesses more control over energy costs and carbon performance.

Alice Dickson, Business Development Manager at Royal Bank of Scotland, said: "Building strong relationships with ambitious businesses is at the heart of what we do, and SQE is a fantastic example of that. Throughout the process, we have been consistently impressed by the leadership team's vision, passion and commitment to bringing greater transparency and innovation to the commercial energy market.

"By taking the time to develop a deep understanding of SQE's business model, growth plans and long-term ambitions, we were able to support the business with a solution designed to grow alongside it as it continues to scale. We are proud to be supporting SQE at this important stage in its development and look forward to working with the team as it continues to build on its success and help shape the future of commercial energy supply in the UK."

Market shift

The deal comes as businesses face more complex choices in electricity procurement, including volatile prices, a broader mix of generation sources and growing pressure to manage emissions. Suppliers serving larger commercial users have been adapting their models to combine trading access, forecasting, billing and flexibility services in a single offer.

SQE's model combines licensed electricity supply with access to independent generators and wholesale counterparties. Its technology platform handles trading, forecasting, billing, reconciliation and carbon reporting, according to the company.

"Large energy users are having to manage more complexity than ever, from volatile costs and decarbonisation to a much more fragmented power market. This new corporate group loan from Royal Bank of Scotland supports the next stage of our growth at SQE while maintaining our capital-light model. Most importantly, it means we can bring a more modern and transparent electricity supply to Britain's largest businesses," said Chris Bowden, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SQE.