Company Information | Guernsey Electricity

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The Board

About Us

The company is owned by the States of Guernsey with the Guernsey Competition and Regulatory Authorities (GCRA) regulating our core business of electricity generation, conveyance and supply. The Board is made up of three Executive Directors, five Non-Executive Directors and a Non-Executive Chair.

We're a vertically integrated power utility dealing in the importation, generation, transmission and distribution of electricity.

The company dates back to 1898 when it began as a concession of Edmondson’s Electricity Corporation of London. In 1907, the Guernsey Electric Light & Power Company acquired the concession, becoming the States Electricity Board in 1932. In 1993, Guernsey Electricity was adopted as the trading name, and in 2001 became Guernsey Electricity Ltd following commercialisation.  

In 1998, the Channel Islands Electricity Grid was established to operate subsea cables supplying electricity from Europe giving a secure, reliable and affordable source of energy. In 2020 the company switched from a mix of nuclear and hydroelectricity imported energy to secure 100% of its imported energy from renewable sources. 

The company is the sole licenced distributor of electricity to Guernsey with over 94% of the island’s energy being supplied through the subsea cables while at the same maintaining sufficient on-island generation capacity. 

The retail store is a major local supplier of a wide range of domestic appliances and home entertainment products, committed to providing high quality goods and a first class service. 

Guernsey Electricity employs around 200 staff in a wide range of positions including retail, electrical operations, plumbing, finance, customer service, power station maintenance and engineering. 

Our Team

Board

The company is owned by the States of Guernsey with the Channel Islands Competition and Regulatory Authorities (CICRA) regulating our core business of electricity generation, conveyance and supply.

The Board is made up of three Executive Directors, five Non-Executive Directors and a Non-Executive Chair, as follows:

Peter Shaefer

Chair

Peter has an honours degree in Geology and is a Chartered Accountant. He has substantial business and commercial experience, having held a number of senior positions in both energy and consumer products industries, including being a member of the Executive Committee of the US listed company Coty Inc.

He currently holds a number of both Executive and Non-Executive Director positions, joining Guernsey Electricity Limited as a Non-Executive Director in 2018.

Gregor Paterson-Jones

Non-Executive Director

Gregor has a long career in financing renewable energy investment that ideally fits with GEL’s future requirements in the delivery of the electricity strategy. He is currently Chief Investment Officer at the National Infrastructure Fund within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. which invests in infrastructure projects in water, transportation, energy, digital and health sectors. Gregor is also the Chairman of the South East Asian Clean Energy Facility Investment Committee (IC) and IC member for Imfraimpact Asset Management SSA. Amongst other IC roles, he was previously a member of the IC of the European Fund for Strategic Investment at the European Investment Bank, Managing Director of the UK Green Investment Bank and CEO of Sterling Waterford Securities in South Africa after a career at Deloitte Consulting. 

 

Justin Bellinger

Non-Executive Director

Justin is well known locally as the previous CEO of Sure Guernsey for the last five years. Whilst in this position Justin was responsible for the £37.5m programme delivering fibre to all Guernsey premises, developing the business case, securing Government funding and building the team that are now delivering this major project. Justin started his career as an electronics engineer before becoming Commercial Director at Cable & Wireless and then Chief Digital Officer at Sure. His skills in the areas of customer and technology are ideally placed to assist GEL in embracing the energy transition, leveraging new technologies and enhancing our customer offering. Justin has a masters degree in Management through McGill University, Montreal, and holds a number of industry certifications in digital transformation. 

 

 

Tania Songini

Non-Executive Director

Tania worked for German engineering multinational company Siemens for over 18 years, including five years within its NW Europe Energy business, which focussed on the construction and installation of large-scale renewable energy and infrastructure projects. She currently sits on the boards of Thrive Renewables and the Private Development Infrastructure Group, London Energy and Oxford Policy Management, and has a comprehensive understanding of sustainable energy technologies and strong governance track record. Tania is the Chair of ViaNinos UK, a charity she established in the UK in 2009 that supports children in Ecuador.

Joanne Peacegood

Non-Executive Director

Jo joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in 2021. Prior to embarking on a career as a Non-Executive Director, Jo was an Audit Engagement Leader at PwC where she spent over 20 years working in the Channel Islands, UK and Canada. Jo also held a number of other leadership roles at PwC including Risk & Quality, Controls Assurance and Innovation & Technology. As a Non-Executive Director, Jo sits on the Board of a number of entities including Listed Renewables, Listed Equities, Private Equity, Debt, Hedge, Real Estate and Asset Managers. Jo is a qualified Chartered Accountant, holds the Institute of Directors’ Diploma in Company Direction and also holds an Honours degree in Accounting. Jo is the Chair of the Guernsey Investment & Fund Association Executive Committee and also sits on the Guernsey International Business Association Council.

Jo Coleman

Non-Executive Director

Joanna has a long career in the energy industry initially working in the oil and gas sectors internationally in roles spanning oil and gas field development, national energy planning, economics, and business development. More recently she has focused on energy transition strategy and driving decarbonisation across all sectors of the economy, working with both private and public sectors. This deep knowledge of the energy transition was specifically gained from her time heading strategy and system modelling at the Energy Technologies Institute and Energy Systems Catapult (looking at the energy transition from a whole energy system, customer centric point of view). Joanna also has a good knowledge of the various market structures and mechanisms required to drive investment, and in her final executive role led Energy Transition for Shell UK, working across Shell’s wind, solar, hydrogen, energy trading, energy retail, EV charging, storage and biofuels businesses to facilitate growth. 

Alan Bates, Chief Executive Officer, Guernsey Electricity

Alan Bates

Chief Executive Officer

Alan became Managing Director (2010) then Chief Executive Officer (2015) having joined from Manx Gas, where he was Managing Director. He commenced his career with P&O Cruises as an Engineering Officer followed by 19 years in the oil and gas industry working for Mobil Oil/BP Oil and IEG. He has a degree in Electro-Mechanical Power Engineering and an MBA in Executive Leadership. Alan is a Chartered Electrical Engineer (MIET), a Chartered Mechanical Engineer (FIMechE), has qualifications in risk and safety management (IIRSM) and is also a member of the Institute of Asset Management. Alan is also a Director of CIEG, FGEN Foresight Environmental Infrastructure, Alderney Electricity and a Board Adviser to Guernsey Water.

Matt Jones

Chief Operations Officer

Matt was appointed to the Board in 2023 bringing over 25 years’ senior management experience in the delivery of essential, front-line services across a range of operational sectors. He holds an MBA from Manchester Alliance Business School in addition to BSc (Hons) and MSc (Eng) degrees. A qualified project and programme manager, Matt has delivered a range of built and technology assets at SRO level across the course of his career. He holds IoD membership and has been a member of the Guernsey Waste Board for several years.

Karl Brouard, Chief Financial Officer, Guernsey Electricity

Karl Brouard

Chief Financial Officer

Karl was appointed to the Board in 2021 and has over 35 years’ experience with Guernsey Electricity in multi-disciplinary roles covering financial, regulatory and engineering functions.  Karl is a dual qualified Chartered Accountant (FCA) and Chartered Electrical Engineer (MIET).  Karl is also a Director of CIEG.

Guernsey Electricity

Annual Report and Accounts

Reviews of the company’s activities throughout the previous year. It gives shareholders and customers information about our achievements, financial performance and our plans for the future.
Please swipe across
Year
Turnover
Pre Tax
Profit / Loss
Units Generated
(MWh)
Units Imported
(MWh)
Carbon Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
(gCO2e/kWh)
View Report
2022/2023
Turnover
£64,646,000
Profit Loss
£2,329,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
33,587
Units Imported
(MWh)
330,508
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
84
2021/2022
Turnover
£59,147,000
Profit Loss
£3,354,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
30,006
Units Imported
(MWh)
340,726
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
73
2020/2021
Turnover
£62,270,000
Profit Loss
£411,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
25,272
Units Imported
(MWh)
359,711
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
68
2019/2020
Turnover
£81,437,000
Profit Loss
-£7,654,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
137,809
Units Imported
(MWh)
394,069
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
67
2018/2019
Turnover
£54,920,000
Profit Loss
£9,321,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
165,043
Units Imported
(MWh)
203,968
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
410
2017/2018
Turnover
£56,343,000
Profit Loss
-£129,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
53,794
Units Imported
(MWh)
318,572
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
223
2016/2017
Turnover
£54,472,000
Profit Loss
£3,690,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
76,975
Units Imported
(MWh)
294,310
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
120
2015/2016
Turnover
£56,222,000
Profit Loss
£4,202,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
87,354
Units Imported
(MWh)
284,892
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2014/2015
Turnover
£55,618,000
Profit Loss
-£2,193,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
156,426
Units Imported
(MWh)
218,002
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2013/2014
Turnover
£55,895,000
Profit Loss
-£231,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
227,057
Units Imported
(MWh)
155,964
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2012/2013
Turnover
£56,443,000
Profit Loss
-£3,353,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
288,760
Units Imported
(MWh)
111,244
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2011/2012
Turnover
£51,887,000
Profit Loss
£5,058,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
68,056
Units Imported
(MWh)
312,703
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2010/2011
Turnover
£50,038,000
Profit Loss
£1,801,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
84,633
Units Imported
(MWh)
308,600
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity
2009/2010
Turnover
£45,503,000
Profit Loss
-£626,000
Units Generated
(MWh)
152,243
Units Imported
(MWh)
239,332
Intensity of
Distributed Electricity