Centrica PLC (LON:CNA) signed a deal with a low-cost IT platform to start a digital-only provider aimed at picking up lost British Gas customers.
The energy firm is stepping up efforts against cheaper and more flexible competitors, to which it lost 286,000 accounts in 2019.
READ: Centrica unveils plans to cut 5,000 jobs, reshuffles board to accelerate restructuring
The new brand name has not been decided yet, the Times reported, although the former FTSE 100 group has been trialling a new company called “British Gas X” since the start of the year.
It uses software from Nottingham-based Ensek, which will serve the new brand too.
Earlier this month, Centrica announced plans to cut 5,000 jobs to simplify its bureaucracy by removing management layers.
Shares were flat at 43.13p on Monday morning.