E.ON agrees to buy OVO: what it means for customers

E.ON announced on 11 May 2026 that it has agreed to acquire OVO's UK retail business for a reported sum of up to £600 million. OVO supplies around 4 million household accounts. If the deal completes, those accounts move under E.ON Next.

It would create the UK's largest supplier

E.ON Next and OVO are both among the larger domestic suppliers. Combined, the two would serve around 9.6 million customers, passing Octopus Energy's roughly 6 million to become the biggest domestic supplier in Great Britain. That is the headline reason the deal needs regulatory clearance: it concentrates a large share of households under one company.

What happens now, and what does not

The transaction is subject to approval by the regulator, with clearance expected in the second half of 2026. Until it closes, E.ON and OVO run as two fully independent businesses. E.ON has said existing tariffs will be honoured in full and service continues unchanged during the review. In practice that means an OVO customer does nothing right now; the brand, app and contract stay as they are until any integration is announced after completion.

What is, and is not, included

The deal is for OVO's energy retail business. Two parts are carved out. OVO's Kaluza software platform stays with OVO Group; on completion E.ON keeps the existing Kaluza licence for OVO's customers rather than buying the platform. OVO's Home Services arm, which sells boiler insurance and servicing, is being sold separately to Hometree.

That leaves a quirk worth watching. E.ON Next already runs on Octopus's rival platform, Kraken, so the combined business would operate two systems side by side: Kraken for E.ON Next's existing customers and Kaluza for the OVO customers it takes on. Our Kraken vs Kaluza piece covers why that internal split could push both on billing accuracy and features. We track both suppliers on their profiles: OVO and E.ON Next.