"Sign up with Bulb Energy in Texas" is no longer good advice.
Most provider review pages on the web still treat Bulb Texas as if it were a live, signable REP. That is out of date. The UK parent, Simple Energy Ltd, ran out of cash in late 2021 after wholesale gas prices spiked and could not pass costs through under the UK retail price cap. It entered Special Administration on 22 November 2021, the first ever use of the UK Energy Supply Company Administration regime.
The UK customer book was eventually transferred to Octopus Energy on 20 December 2022 after a year of government-funded run-off. The Texas subsidiary was carved out of the UK administration, but never relaunched a visible consumer brand in Texas afterwards. As of May 2026, Bulb does not operate a customer-facing storefront on the Texas market and the bulb.co/en-us domain no longer returns a working product page.
If you came here looking to switch to Bulb in Texas: the closest equivalents are Green Mountain Energy, Rhythm Energy and Gexa Energy for 100% renewable plans. If you came here because you used to be a Bulb customer in Texas: your account was almost certainly moved years ago through a PUCT Provider of Last Resort transition. Check your last bill to see who took over.
Three phases. One company. Texas left behind.
Bulb Energy moved through three clear phases, each with a different status for Texas customers. Once you see them in order, the page that follows reads cleanly.
Phase 1 · 2015-2021
Growth as a UK renewable supplier
Founded in 2015 by Hayden Wood and Amit Gudka. By 2020 Bulb had grown to about 1.6 million UK households and expanded to Spain, France and Texas, marketing a single 100% renewable tariff with a flat per-kWh structure.
Phase 2 · Nov 2021 - Dec 2022
Special Administration
UK wholesale gas prices roughly quadrupled in autumn 2021. With its retail prices capped by Ofgem and unhedged exposure, Bulb ran out of working capital. The UK government stepped in and put Bulb into a bespoke Special Administration regime to keep the lights on for 1.5 million homes.
Phase 3 · 2023 onwards
Octopus takes the UK book, Texas goes quiet
Octopus Energy completed the migration of former Bulb UK customers in 2023 under Ofgem's "Last Resort Supply Direction". Texas was kept legally separate, but its consumer-facing brand did not return; as of May 2026 the US-facing pages are offline.
What each part of the Bulb story means for you.
The Bulb collapse generated a lot of news-cycle headlines. Most of it does not affect Texas customers directly. This table separates the noise from what actually matters for your bill.
| Event | Date | Where it applies | Affects Texas? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulb founded as Simple Energy Ltd | August 2015 | UK | No |
| Bulb US Inc. launches in Texas | 2018 | ERCOT deregulated zones | Yes |
| UK Special Administration begins | 22 November 2021 | UK only (US ringfenced) | Indirect |
| Octopus Energy acquires UK book | 20 December 2022 | UK only | No |
| Texas storefront goes quiet | 2022 onwards | Texas | Direct |
| No public Texas storefront | As of May 2026 | Texas | Direct |
The Texas subsidiary was legally separate from the UK parent. The UK administrators and Octopus took only UK customers. Texas customers were handled separately under PUCT rules.
"100% renewable" in Texas is about 60% supply choice, 40% wires.
The single biggest reason Bulb US could not undercut Texas incumbents the way it did in the UK is that only about 60% of a typical Texas bill is supply. The remaining 40% is the TDU charge, set by the PUCT, identical across every REP in your zone.
So a Bulb "100% renewable" promise could only move the supply slice. A 10% supply discount became roughly 6% off the total. That math, combined with the 2021 wholesale gas spike, is what made the UK parent unsustainable.
Any current 100% renewable REP in Texas (Green Mountain, Rhythm, Gexa Eco Saver, others) sits inside exactly the same structural math. Compare the all-in EFL price at your usage, not just the headline rate.
at TX-average all-in rate, Oncor zone
How the UK collapse actually unfolded, in order.
Four price-setting and regulatory steps that turned Bulb from a 1.6-million-customer challenger into the largest UK energy supplier failure on record.
Wholesale gas spike (autumn 2021)
UK day-ahead gas roughly quadrupled between summer and autumn 2021. Power prices followed, since gas sets the marginal generator on the UK grid. Bulb had limited hedges and a thin balance sheet.
UK price cap squeeze
Ofgem's UK retail price cap only adjusts twice a year. Wholesale costs ran ahead of the cap, so suppliers like Bulb sold every kWh at a loss. Cash burn became existential within weeks.
Special Administration (22 Nov 2021)
Bulb was too large for Ofgem's standard Supplier of Last Resort process. The UK government put it into a bespoke special administration funded by a Treasury loan, the first ever use of the regime.
Octopus migration (Dec 2022 - 2023)
After a competitive process, Octopus Energy took the UK customer book in December 2022 and completed migration across 2023. The Texas, Spain and France subsidiaries were excluded from that deal.
The Texas market is structured differently. ERCOT REPs pass wholesale costs through faster, and there is no retail price cap. That asymmetric exposure is the reason Bulb's UK problem did not, on paper, have to kill Bulb Texas. The Texas brand still went quiet, however, because the parent's capital lines were gone.
How former Bulb customers quietly overpay today.
Five recurring patterns we see in former Bulb households that ended up on default rates after the Texas storefront went quiet.
If a higher post-Bulb bill is straining your budget.
Texas runs the federal LIHEAP program under the local name CEAP, the Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program, administered through the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) and delivered by local community action agencies.
Eligible Texas households can receive direct bill-payment assistance and arrears support. The program is means-tested and capped by household size; the local sub-recipient agency in your county runs intake.
What former Bulb Texas customers should actually do.
Read your latest bill
Identify who is currently billing you and at what rate. If it says "default" or shows a rate above 16 cents per kWh, you are likely on a POLR rate.
Check the EFL
Every Texas REP must publish an Electricity Facts Label showing the all-in price at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh. Compare these three numbers, not the headline rate.
Filter Power to Choose
The PUCT runs Power to Choose as the official, unbiased REP comparison. Tick the "100% renewable" filter to match Bulb's original positioning.
Watch the ETF
A new fixed plan often has an early termination fee of $150-$295. If you might move, prefer a month-to-month variable plan or a plan with a low ETF.
Avoid TOU if you cool by day
Time-of-Use plans punish 2-7 pm usage in Texas summer. If you cannot shift cooling load to night, a flat rate is usually cheaper than a discounted free-nights plan.
Ask for CEAP if needed
If a high default rate has built up arrears, the Texas CEAP program can cover part of the balance. Contact your local TDHCA sub-recipient agency or dial 211.
Common questions about Bulb Energy in Texas.
No active public storefront. As of May 2026, Bulb does not market or sign up new residential customers in Texas, and the consumer-facing US web pages no longer return a working product page. Existing customers were moved to other Texas REPs through PUCT transition processes after the UK parent collapsed in late 2021. If you believe you are still billed under the Bulb brand, check your latest bill for the actual REP name and certificate number on the bottom.
No. Octopus Energy acquired only the UK customer book of Bulb on 20 December 2022. The Texas subsidiary was carved out of that deal. Octopus does operate in Texas as Octopus Energy US, but that operation was launched separately and is not a continuation of Bulb Texas.
It depends on when and how your account was transitioned. Look at the bottom of your most recent electric bill: the REP name and PUCT certificate number are printed there. If you were moved through a POLR process, you are likely on a default rate well above market and should switch through Power to Choose.
Bulb grew on a thin margin in the UK. When wholesale gas roughly quadrupled in autumn 2021 and Ofgem's UK retail price cap only adjusts twice a year, Bulb sold every kWh below cost. With limited hedges and a thin balance sheet, working capital ran out within weeks. Texas was structurally less exposed, but lost its parent funding line.
Green Mountain Energy, Rhythm Energy and Gexa Energy all sell 100% renewable plans across most ERCOT zones. Each publishes an Electricity Facts Label showing the all-in price at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh. Compare those three numbers at your actual usage, then check the early termination fee and contract length.
There is no public announcement of a relaunch as of May 2026. The Bulb brand sits inside Octopus Energy in the UK. Octopus operates separately in Texas under its own brand. Unless a future transaction explicitly revives Bulb in Texas, you should treat the brand as historical for US purposes.
More U.S. states with energy choice
Same playbook, different utility. Pick another deregulated state to compare utilities, suppliers and switching rules.
