Yesterday, SSE marked yet another milestone in the development of its Northern Irish business, as we welcomed the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, Arlene Foster to officiate at the opening of our new corporate headquarters and customer service centre located in Belfast City Centre.
I’m delighted that in Millennium House we’ve secured a premier city centre location that is not only suitable for our planned business growth but one that brings all of our SSE team in Belfast together under one roof.
Yesterday's event marked more than just the opening of a new office. It represents a further investment by SSE in our Northern Irish business and is a clear symbol of our long-term commitment here.
In the last six years, SSE’s business in Northern Ireland has grown from strength to strength. From small beginnings the SSE Airtricity brand has established itself as Northern Ireland’s second largest energy supplier with a 30% share of the combined electricity and natural gas market.
We have invested around half a billion in Northern Ireland so far, we’ve grown our workforce from 10 employees to over 100 with a further 143 positions to be filled, our retail business now has 300,000 home and business customers compared to just 7,000 six years ago and are producing electricity with almost 90MW is green energy for our customers in NI. Meanwhile, we continue to seek out new market opportunities and in the last year we’ve launched a new Energy Services Business.
Key to SSE’s success in Northern Ireland has been our employees, who are proud to make a difference every day. Customer focused with a passionate commitment to teamwork and excellence, they continuously seek new and bolder solutions to transform how we generate, and use energy in a reliable, sustainable and competitive way.
Yesterday, it was our staff who took centre stage with Minister Foster and as we celebrate our people who have fuelled our business growth, it makes me proud to say 'We're SSE'.
Read more about the opening of SSE's new Northern Ireland HQ here.