Elon Musk’s Tesla has formally applied to the British energy regulator Ofgem for a license to supply electricity to homes and businesses across the United Kingdom. The application, submitted by Tesla Energy Ventures Limited and signed by Andrew Payne, head of Tesla’s European energy operations, was filed late last month and covers the supply of electricity to all domestic and non-domestic premises within Great Britain and surrounding territorial waters.
If approved a process that could take up to nine months Tesla could enter the UK energy market by next year, competing with established energy suppliers. Tesla already operates an electricity supply business in Texas, offering innovative options such as allowing EV owners unlimited home charging for a fixed monthly fee and enabling customers to sell surplus power back to the grid.
This move aligns with Tesla’s broader push into battery storage, solar energy, and sustainable energy solutions. It also comes amid a sharp decline in Tesla’s new car sales in the UK and Europe, with recent data showing a nearly 60% drop in British sales last month compared to a year earlier.
Tesla’s UK entry into energy supply aims to accelerate the transition to renewable energy, simplifying customer experience around retail electricity and virtual power plants to maximize small-scale residential energy flexibility supporting a grid running on 100% renewables.
This development marks Tesla’s first formal step to supply electricity outside the U.S., reinforcing its evolving role as not just a car manufacturer but also a key player in the clean energy sector.
