Centrica beefs up social housing presence

16th May 2011 08:53

Centrica's British Gas Community Energy division has acquired PH Jones Group, a provider of central heating services to the social housing market, for £30m in cash.The acquisition represents another step in energy supplier Centrica's strategy to beef up its presence in the social housing energy services sector, and follows the announcement in September 2010 of a strategic partnership with Mears1 to jointly bid on repair and maintenance contracts in the social housing sector."Social housing is a strategically important market for British Gas. It not only represents 20% of Britain's housing stock, but it is also an early adopter of energy efficiency and renewable technologies," said Betsy Bassis, managing director of British Gas Community Energy.PH Jones's social housing business provides central heating service and repair for around 250,000 properties under 42 contracts. It also carries out over 8,000 central heating installations every year through 28 contracts within the social housing sector. The acquisition will add around 850 employees to the British Gas workforce. Around 560 of the employees joining British Gas work in the Social Housing business. The transaction does not include the Utility Services business previously operated by PH Jones, which will be retained by the vendors."The acquisition of PH Jones significantly accelerates our growth strategy in social housing. PH Jones is a successful, profitable company in this sector and combining its strengths with those of British Gas will deliver important benefits for our customers," Bassis said. ---jh