Griff Jones predicts lots of consolidation in Texas

Champion buys Mpower

Eagle Energy Partners CEO Griff Jones forecasts continued consolidation in the ERCOT retail market.
        He founded Eagle Energy in 2003 after a dozen years at Dynegy in natural gas and power trading and marketing.
Hurry -- early bird discount ends soon!

The market for MDU BPL is heating up

BPL Today's live audio conference, Nov 13
12:00 - 1:30 EST

Find out what major players -- including Ameren and Motorola -- in the virtually untapped and incredibly vast market segment of MDU BPL are thinking and planning on by attending BPL Today's Nov 13 live interactive audio conference on the subject.

Click here or call 800-486-8201 (+1-202-298-8201) for more information and to register.         Eagle Energy is a power and natural gas wholesaler that owns Houston-based retail marketer Champion Energy Services.
        Champion bought the assets of Houston-based Mpower Retail Energy.
        Mpower had about 3,000 C&I customers with a peak load of 600-700 mw.
        That pushes Champion's customer count past 4,000.
        Champion isn't on a buying binge, Jones told us.
        He's focused on organic growth but is always looking for acquisitions that fit Champion's business model.
        Mpower was a good fit, he explained, because both marketers stress C&I sales through third-party channels.
        Champion sells almost exclusively through aggregators, brokers and consultants (ABCs) to lower acquisition costs, Jones explained.
        That keeps overhead down and means he doesn't have to hire a huge sales force.
        ABCs have a big reach throughout ERCOT that lets Champion reach customers in different areas more easily, he added.
        ABCs have strong relationships with customers as well, Jones noted -- ones that are hard to break.
        The deal lets Champion accelerate its growth, he told us.
        He sees the marketer filling a role of a larger independent retailer that has the financial resources to compete with the big affiliated marketers such as TXU Energy and Reliant Energy.
        Eagle Energy is financially backed by leading US gas driller Chesapeake Energy and Lehman Brothers.
        Why does Jones see more consolidation?
        Lots of marketers just don't have the money to grow, he explained, but there's "still a lot of business out there" for marketers.
        Originally published in Restructuring Today on September 21, 2006