Drax Group, owner of Ipswich-based Haven Power, has completed the £340m acquisition of Opus Energy, a challenger supplier in the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) energy market.

Ipswich Star: Jonathan Kini, Drax Retail chief executive. Picture: VISMEDIAJonathan Kini, Drax Retail chief executive. Picture: VISMEDIA (Image: VisMedia/DANIEL LEWIS)

The deal, first announced in December, is expected to accelerate the group’s drive into the SME market, which is already being targeted by Haven Power alongside its base of larger business customers in the industrial and commercial sectors.

Drax chief executive Dorothy Thompson said: “Today we took another step forward in delivering our group-wide strategy.

“This addition to our existing retail offer will see our challenger brands, Opus Energy and Haven Power, working to provide the UK’s businesses with affordable, reliable and renewable energy.”

The acquisition of Opus, which is based in Northampton, will in particular help Haven to satisfy demand from smaller firms for “dual fuel” deals.

Jonathan Kini, previously chief executive of Haven Power, will now head both Haven and Opus as Drax Retail chief executive. Charlie Crossley Cooke and Louise Boland, chief executive and managing director of Opus respectively, will leave the business following a hand-over period.

Speaking last December, Mr Kini said the deal represented a “fantastic opportunity” to grow the the retail business built up by the team at Haven Power since its launch 10 years ago.

Haven, which employs around 400 people, last year achieved sales of around £1.3bn and gross profit of £19m. Opus, which has a workforce of 870, generated revenues of £573m and a gross profit of £107m.

Drax acquired Haven Power in 2009 to provide a cost-effective route to market for the electricity it generates, which now largely involves burning bio-mass in place of coal.