E.ON to take customers of three failed British Energy suppliers

LONDON (Reuters) -E.ON brand E.ON Next has been appointed to take on the nearly 233,000 customers of three failed small British energy suppliers, regulator Ofgem said on Monday.

Enstroga, Igloo Energy and Symbio Energy all ceased trading last month, taking the tally of British energy suppliers to go bust in September to nine as wholesale energy prices hit record levels.

Companies typically hedge their customers' needs many months in advance but smaller suppliers with less capital have struggled to keep pace with wholesale energy price rises that have trebled this year.

Customers' energy supply will continue as normal and they will be switched officially to E.ON Next from Oct. 3, Ofgem said.

Any outstanding credits will be protected.

Potential new energy costs will be covered by the regulator's price cap but if customers were on cheaper fixed tariffs they may have to pay more with their new supplier.

The cap on the most widely used tariffs rose by 12-13% from Oct. 1 to reflect the rapid rise in wholesale prices.

(Reporting by Susanna TwidaleEditing by David Goodman)