The UK energy market has undergone enormous changes since privatisation. Since the 1990s both the electricity and gas markets have been gradually opened up to competition, becoming fully liberalised in 1998, and now both residential and commercial users can buy gas and electricity from any of the supply companies, regardless of their geographical location. There has also been an increasing move towards vertical integration, with energy companies now operating in all areas of the supply chain - from electricity generation to the supply of electricity and gas - and expanding their geographic reach.

E.ON UK is a leading player in the UK energy market, and the largest integrated power and gas business, generating and distributing electricity, and trading and retailing electricity and gas. E.ON UK employs almost 13,000 people, and had sales in 2005 of €10.2 billion, or £7.0 billion. We are part of the E.ON Group (http://www.eon.com/), which has electricity and gas interests in Germany, Central and Eastern Europe, Italy, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, the USA and Russia.

More detail on the structure and operation of the business is given here. For information about the E.ON Group, click here.

During 2005, E.ON UK made the following acquisitions:

• February: United Utilities Wind Farm business - on- and off-shore developments with a total potential capacity of 500 megawatts (MW)
• March: Economy Power Ltd - a supplier of electricity to small and medium enterprises.
• April: Enfield Energy Centre Ltd - operates a modern and efficient 392MW gas-fired power station located near London. This expanded E.ON UK's leading position in power generation.
• July: Holford Gas Storage Ltd - a company formed to develop one of the UK's largest underground natural gas storage facilities.
• October: City Technical Services (UK) Ltd - a heating services company providing domestic central heating installation, maintenance and service and safety inspections.

460 staff joined E.ON UK in 2005 as a result of these acquisitions.

E.ON Group organisational structure

Where we operate in the UK and Ireland