Royal Dutch Shell Plc, which invested in Makani, said it’s exploring options to use Makani’s technology.

(Bloomberg) — Alphabet Inc. is shutting down Makani, a subsidiary working on wind energy, as Google’s parent company pares back its experimental technology in favor of its main internet business.

Makani was formed in 2006 to make flying kites that would harness wind power and, eventually, replace more expensive turbines. Google acquired the startup in 2013, placing the group inside its X lab with other “moonshots” like self-driving cars. Makani later became its own Alphabet unit. But the initiative suffered personnel problems and waning support from its parent company, which has pulled back on several green energy projects. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last few days on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 18 February 2020.

If you’re looking for an energy company…

If you’re looking for an energy company with good service and competitive prices don’t go to Shell hi prices and terrible customer services read more

Shell Energy Europe Ltd. has agreed to trade power from what will be the U.K.’s largest battery storage project.

The Royal Dutch Shell Plc unit agreed to a multi-year deal to “optimize the use of renewable power” in the China-backed project, which is expected to come online by the end of this year. Batteries, Shell says, will play a key role in the energy transition as these will be able to store excess energy and feed it back to the grid when demand calls for it.

China Huaneng Group and China’s state-backed CNIC fund are backing the Minety power storage project, which consists of two 50-megawatt batteries in southwest England. “Projects like this will be vital for balancing the U.K.’s electricity demand and supply as wind and solar power play bigger roles in powering our lives,” according to David Wells, vice president of SEEL. read more

Just Energy took €5.2m loss before its Irish exit last year

February 17, 2020

The defunct Irish unit of US-Canadian firm Just Energy racked up a €5.2m loss in the year before it pulled the plug, newly filed accounts show.

Just Energy’s Irish operation had about 10,000 customers when the parent firm announced its exit from the Irish market last May.

It planned to sell non-core assets and focus on “higher margin North American operations”, the firm said then.

In October, it sold its UK unit to Shell Energy Retail.

The following month, Flogas agreed to acquire Just Energy’s customer accounts in Ireland for just €675,000. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last few days on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 13 February 2020.

Truely awful, avoid at all cost

Truely awful. Takes very long to answer phones every time, no matter what day of week. I bought a house and received estimated bills. When I tried to update the reading, it keeps saying on the system it’s invalid. But they wouldn’t listen that I haven’t moved in yet. And of course I keep getting estimated bills which are way higher than they should be. read more

February 12 (Renewables Now) – The electric distribution companies (EDCs) in Massachusetts are seeking the state Department of Public Utilities’ approval of power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Mayflower Wind LLC for the output of an 804-MW offshore wind farm.

The contracts with Unitil, National Grid and Eversource Energy have terms of 20 years.

The project, developed by Shell New Energies and EDP Renewables, was the winner in Massachusetts’ second Request for Proposals (RfP) for offshore wind projects. The levelised price agreed for the wind farm’s output stands at USD 58.47 (EUR 53.6) per MWh in real 2019 dollars, according to a letter in support of the long-term power contracts by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources. The Mayflower wind park is projected to bring direct savings to ratepayers of USD 24/MWh in real 2019 dollars, on average, over the term of the power contracts. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last few days on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring themes in negative reviews including the difficulty in communicating with the company and suspicion that many of the positive reviews are fake.

Posted 10 Feb 2020.

Awful company

Awful company, thank god i wasn’t a signed up member!
Moved into a property supplied by Shell Energy, switched straight away, took meter reading and supplied to them on the 1st day.
Then they start sending text messages to say to call a number to pay, search of the number online shows it as a scamming number rated as ‘Dangerous’ on ‘Who Called Me’.
When you call the number they want all your personal details and bank details without even confirming anything to prove who they are and they know who is calling them, they ended up hanging up on me when I asked them to confirm some of my details even just my door number.
Go to the website, its just as bad trying to get some contact details, eventually had to fill out a form as even the online chat isn’t a chat, its automated.
Eventually get an email from them confirming the details, and I pay and send them confirmation via email, then I continue to get threatening messages about outstanding payment and debt collectors.
Awful company, I’m guessing staff members have increased their ratings on here, have a look at their ratings on some other sites. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Posted 07 Feb 2020.

I too was a customer of First Utility(continued)…

I too was a customer of First Utility and was very satisfied with them. I was not told that Shell were taking over but things continued in the same satisfactory fashion. Now with the tariff expiring I find that they are impossible to communicate with in any shape or form. My only hope is that they see this complaint and finally answer my email. read more

Featured below is one spectacularly negative customer review about Shell Energy posted today, 7 February 2020 on Trust Pilot.

One particular description of staff at Shell Energy has been redacted here. It was still displayed on Trustpilot at the time of publication here.

JUST HAD A BILL FROM THESE SCUM ASKING…

JUST HAD A BILL FROM THESE SCUM ASKING FOR £196.00 GOING BACK TO JULY 2019, WHEN I JOINED FIRST UTILITY IN NOVEMBER 2017 NO CHARGES FOR KWH GAS AND ELECTRICITY WERE GIVEN, NO CHARGE FOR DAILY SUPPLY OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY AND NO CONVERSION FORMULA FOR CHANGING CUBIC METRES (GAS) INTO KWH, SUPPOSEDLY I WAS ON A FIXED TARIFF HAVING SUPPLIED 52 WEEKS WORTH OF METER READINGS PRIOR TO THE AGREEMENT BEING PUT IN PLACE, BY JANUARY 2018 THESE FILTHY PARASITES WERE ASKING FOR MORE MONEY, I WAS SUPPOSEDLY USING MORE GAS AND ELECTRICITY, HOW DID THEY WORK THAT OUT IN TWO WINTER MONTHS WHEN I SUPPLIED THEM WITH THE PREVIOUS 12 MONTHS OR 365 DAYS WORTH OF ACTUAL CONSUMPTION FIGURES.
THESE WASTERS ARE A BUNCH OF CON ARTISTS WHO MAKE YOUR AVERAGE LOAN SHARK SEEM ETHICAL, WHEN I WENT TO THE OMBUDSMAN (FIRST TIME) I WAS TOLD ON THE BASIS OF WHAT THEY CHARGED FOR THEIR ENERGY SUPPLY I OWED THEM WHAT THEY WERE ASKING FOR, THE CITIZENS ADVICE SPOKE TO ONE OF THE REDACTED WHO JOKINGLY REFER TO THEMSELVES AS CUSTOMER SERVICE AND VERIFIED THE FIGURES BUT THEY ALSO SAID THAT IN ORDER TO PAY FOR THE CHARGES A DIRECT DEBIT OF BETWEEN £112.00 TO £120.00 WAS NEEDED, FU WHO WERE SUPPLIED BY ENERGY BY SHELL AND WHO WERE IN THE PROCESS OF BEING TAKEN OVER BY SHELL PUT A DD IN PLACE FOR £76. 00 WHICH DELIBERATELY SET OUT TO PUT ME IN DEBT AND TIE ME INTO THEIR “FIXED TARIFF” UNTIL SEPTEMBER 2020 HAD I NOT GOT OUT EARLIER.
THE (REDACTED) AT FU SOON TO BECOME SHELL EARNED THEIR BANANAS BY TELLING ME THEY HAD NEVER RECEIVED ANY FIGURES FOR GAS AND ELECTRICITY AND WOULD HAVE CHARGED ME MORE IF THEY HAD, THEY PUT A FIXED TARIFF IN PLACE WHICH WAS UNDER VALUED AND WOULD RESULT IN MORE MONEY BEING DEMANDED SO HOW WAS I EVER ON ANY KIND OF FIXED TARIFF, THESE GARBAGE MERCHANTS STILL WANTED THEIR £30.00 GAS AND ELECTRICITY EXIT FEES HOWEVER FOLLOWED BY THE USUAL THREATS.
TELL ME YOU FILTHY PACK OF MAGGOTS HOW IS THAT A BUNCH OF LYING CONNIVING THREE FACED BLOODSUCKING PARASITES SUCH AS SHELL ENERGY ARE SO GOOD AT QUOTING LEGAL REDRESS AGAINST CUSTOMERS WHILE GOING OUT OF YOUR WAY TO MIS-SELL, LIE, CHEAT AND STEAL AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY.
I HAVE TAKEN THEIR FIGURES FOR KWH AND DAILY STANDING CHARGES AND THEIR CONVERSION FACTOR AND GONE BACK TO NOVEMBER 2017 THROUGH TO JULY 2019, USING THE RECORDED METER READINGS FOR THIS SAME PERIOD I HAVE CALCULATED THAT THEY OWE ME £350.00 FROM OVER PAYMENT AND MY LOCAL CAB HAVE CONFIRMED THE ACCURACY OF THESE FIGURES, THIS £196.00 WAS OKAYED BY MY SECOND COMPLAINT TO THE OMBUDSMAN WHO SHOULD PERHAPS BE REMINDED OF THE ADAGE, LIES, DAMNED LIES AND STATISTICS, NOW YOU CAN ADD IN SHELL ENERGY ACCOUNTING AS THE FOURTH EXAMPLE OF LIES BEING PASSED OFF AS TRUTH.
HAVE WRITTEN TO OFGEM WHO WERE NO USE WHATSOEVER AS IS THE CASE WITH MOST QUANGOS AND HAVE WRITTEN TO MY MP FOR THE SECOND TIME, WHERE SHELL ENERGY ARE CONCERNED THEY SHOULD BE LOOKED ON IN THE SAME WAY AS THE CORONA VIRUS, THE CONTAGION STARTS WITH A FEW CASES AND THEN SPREADS, SHELL ENERGY ARE THE MOST EVIL BUNCH OF FAECES THAT HAS EVER PASSED ITSELF OFF AS AN ENERGY SUPPLIER.
SPREAD THE WORD VIA SOCIAL MEDIA, PUT YOUR COMPLAINTS ONTO THE WEBSITE, COMPLAIN TO THE OMBUDSMAN, OFGEM, YOUR MP OLD UNCLE TOM COBLEY AND ALL UNTIL THESE WORTHLESS VERMIN ARE FORCED OUT OF BUSINESS, THE MORE BAD PUBLICITY THEY GET EVEN THESE USELESS QUANGOS WILL BE FORCED INTO TAKING ACTION IF ONLY TO STOP THE TIDE OF COMPLAINTS THEY ARE BEING SWAMPED WITH, IF YOU READ GOOD 5 STAR REVIEWS OF THIS COMPANY THEN MY GUESS WOULD BE THEY ORIGINATED VIA SHELL ENERGY CUSTOMER SERVICES, ESPECIALLY THE ONES ABOUT QUICK RESPONSE AND PROBLEMS BEING HANDLED, THIS EXPLAINS WHY IT TAKES 40 TO 60 MINUTES ON AVERAGE TO GET THROUGH, THEY ARE BUSY PUTTING THEIR FANTASY ISLAND REVIEWS ONTO THE WEBSITE, BEWARE AND AVOID THESE SCUM!!!!!!!!!! read more

Energy bills will fall for 15 million UK households as the regulator Office for Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM) reduces the default price cap and pre-payment meter cap from April.

The default price cap, which protects around 11 million households, is set to fall from £1,179 to £1,162 for the summer period, from April to September. The pre-payment meter cap, which protects a further 4 million households, will fall from £1,217 to £1,200 per year for the same six month period.

OFGEM chief executive Jonathan Brearley said households could get even lower bills by switching suppliers. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Posted 4 Feb 2020.

Avoid .. awful

I have tried three times to talk to someone about my account today, and the only loop I end up in is your telephone loop. I have asked to be passed to a supervisor/manager, and both Kyle and Shahid on separate calls put me back into your telephone loop, which is never answered. I have emailed customer services and not yet been contacted back. Their chat line is automated, or seems to be, and I am completely unable to chat to anyone who can help me. Their service levels are appalling. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. Posted 1 Feb 2020.

Their mistakes ruin your credit rating.

Let’s start with the easy bits, if you need to speak to someone, take a seat with a nice drink because your in for a 30 minute wait. I have had to call this company a few times recently and each time has been the same wait. But this company can top that. So on the 24th january my bill was due, however being a empty property new tenants took over on the 23rd january. So I called shell on the 24th informed them of these changes and they informed me they would raise a final bill and to pay that. Fast forward to today the 1st January, I recieved a debt collector letter in regards to the bill due 24th january for the grand total of £32.13. I also recieved a letter from shell which was my final bill showing the previous amount minus a credit. So in short and this was confirmed by their own customer service that on the 25th january they sent my account to a debt collector a day after I had called them for a final bill. Literally a joke of a company, had this actually been my real name on the account this would have impacted my credit rating. Completely incompetent company. Stay clear you have been warned. read more

Saturday, February 1st, 2020

Energy provider and UK ISP Shell Energy has kicked off February 2020 by discounting their range of home broadband and phone packages for new subscribers, which appear to drop the prices lower than last year’s Black Friday event. On top of that they’ve added some Amazon shopping vouchers.

As usual subscribers can expect to receive unlimited usage, a free wireless router, phone line rental (standard call charges), free connection and an 18 month minimum contract term. On top of that they also pledge NOT to hike your broadband prices up at the end of your initial minimum contract period. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. Posted 29 Jan 2020.

Terrible customer service stay away from this company

Currently been on hold for nearly an hour !!! Tied into a 5 yr contract with extortionate prices, they want £100 from me to leave !!! Worst company I have dealt with in a long time. read more

47 fixed price energy deals will end this month.

Brits are being urged to switch energy supplier by 31st January as bills are set to skyrocket by £114 per household.

According to new data conducted by comparison site uSwitch, over 142,000 UK households could see their bills boosted by a hefty 19%, as 47 fixed price deals come to an end this month. This means those who don’t switch supplier by the deadline could be automatically rolled onto their supplier’s default, or the ‘Standard Variable’ tariff, which are among the worst value energy plans on the market.

Bills for 142,000 households will go up by £16 million if they don’t switch. The average household will see increases of £114 per year, but those who are customers of EDF, Shell Energy and Scottish Power could see rises of £192, £175, and £146 respectively. read more

The featured extracts are from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. Posted 28 Jan 2020.

Can’t get an email response

Can’t get an email response. The automated chat was useless. Calling a waste of time as still could not speak to an agent. Was then directed to live chat only to find I was number 25 in the queue. What waste of an hour. read more

The featured extracts are from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. Posted 24 Jan 2020.

been since Wednesday too many broken… read more

The featured extracts are from customer reviews about Shell Energy posted on Trustpilot on 22 Jan 2020.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. 

Don’t make the same mistake I made and use Shell Energy

The customer service for this company is non-existent, been waiting for help on call for the past 45 minutes. Never ever have I experienced such awful customer service… Avoid this company at all costs.

This company is a joke I left a review…

This company is a joke I left a review on shell last week. Called them again at 10.15 am and waited 20 minutes then a recorded message said they can call you back. It’s now 15.15 and still no call back. Their billing system is a joke… They are a joke cowboys!!!!!!

Would never go back to them poor service

Poor customer service waiting on the phone for a long time I eventually hung up… read more

The featured extracts are from current customer reviews about Shell Energy posted on Trustpilot. Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos, punctuation and grammar corrected for ease of reading. 

Harassed to pay a bill 3 days earlier than it’s actually due

I have an energy bill that is due 24th of January, however today (21st of January) I’m getting an SMS from this hideous company telling me to pay my bill already. The message says that the bill payment is due. Seriously? I was getting this before, but this is a new “record”… 3 days before the bill is due … STOP HARASSING ME.

Terrible Customer Service

First utility was an excellent company. Since they went over to Shell the customer service has gone rapidly downhill.

They have their business model completely wrong. Isn’t it interesting how they have a member of staff responding to each of these reviews yet they have no staff available to actually deal with customer’s queries? Something very wrong there. read more

The Scots writer was ordered to ‘refrain from swearing’ by Shell energy when he complained about their service as he struggled to settle an outstanding bill online.

Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh has blasted his energy company after they warned him about swearing online in a dispute over a bill.

The writer had complained on Twitter that he was struggling to settle the debt because provider Shell Energy had not sent him the correct details.

He said he had been waiting five hours for the necessary information and described the situation as a “f***ing joke”.

A staff member from the firm then got in touch with him on the social media platform to try to resolve the matter and asked him to “refrain from swearing”. read more