Vayu, Ireland's leading independent energy supplier, has announced its expansion into the UK.

Targeting the business gas market, Vayu will provide natural gas and energy services to businesses across the UK's industrial and commercial sector.

Vayu has grown steadily since 2003, when it became the first independent supplier to be awarded a gas shipping and supply license in Ireland. The company now supplies 22% of Ireland's largest natural gas business customers and 15% of the mid-sized gas user segment. Gas customers include companies such as Tesco, IBM, Debenhams and DHL.

Having shaken up the Irish gas market, Liam Faulkner, Commercial Director of Vayu says the company is focussed on becoming a leading provider of gas and energy procurement solutions to businesses across the UK, giving customers a competitive alternative to other suppliers in the sector. Valued at over £7 billion per annum, the UK's business gas sector is almost ten times the size of Ireland's, offering significant growth potential for Vayu.

"We believe there remains a large untapped opportunity to deliver new services into the UK market," said Mr Faulkner. "Vayu will be investing heavily in winning customers by changing the way UK businesses view their energy-related decisions and empowering customers to become more active in the area of energy procurement and demand management."

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"We have established a business model that has worked exceptionally well in Ireland, creating flexibility for gas users that wasn't there previously. Our model is highly transferable - similar to the approach used by telecoms - which means we can follow our existing customers into the UK while also pursuing new business wins in this market."

Heading up the UK business is Head of Energy Services Vayu UK, Simon Firth. Simon's role is to grow Vayu's customer base in the UK. Simon brings a wealth of experience and passion for delivering exceptional customer service, having spent 20 years in the energy industry working in a variety of segmented sales and service roles for Yorkshire Electricity Group, Npower and Bergen Energi.

Mr Firth commented: "This is a very exciting time for Vayu as we enter into the UK market and I believe we have outstanding solutions to offer. In addition to gas supply, our Active Energy Management service monitors consumption in real time, reporting back deviations from normal energy usage. At Vayu UK we use energy management, monitoring and technology to improve our customers' energy performance, reducing cost, consumption and carbon.

"Whilst we are industry experts in the registration and invoicing of gas supplies we realise that the timing of wholesale commodity purchasing is one of the central factors in achieving or beating financial budgets, and so Vayu UK adds significant value to businesses by offering Risk Management services. These services help support clients with their understanding of the consumption and commercial risks faced with purchasing energy in a volatile market. We work with customers to develop robust purchasing strategies, with a documented risk management approach."

(CD/MH)