What is an electricity supplier (and what it does for you)
In short: the supplier is the company that buys energy and sells it to you. It is the only step in the chain you deal with directly, and you can choose it freely.
This is Part 5. We saw distribution; now we talk about who sends you the bill.
What does a supplier do?
It buys electricity from producers on the wholesale market, sells it to customers and pays the networks for the use it makes of them. It sets its offers freely: prices, discounts and conditions. That is why offers vary a lot from one company to another.
Free market and supplier of last resort
In the free market, you choose the supplier and the tariff that suit you best. There is also the supplier of last resort, which supplies economically vulnerable people, people with no offers in the free market in their area, and people whose supplier has stopped operating.
In the Azores and Madeira there is only one supplier, which applies tariffs regulated by ERSE. And, according to ERSE, household consumers still supplied by a supplier of last resort have until 31 December 2027 to look for a supplier in the market.
Can I change whenever I want?
Yes, and at no cost to you. We explain how in Part 9. To choose well, it helps to first understand how the price of energy is formed.