SOUTH Shields-based Utilitywise’s listing on the stock market has been shortlisted for a national award.

The energy and utilities consultancy will compete in the ‘Best IPO or fundraising’ category at the prestigious Shares Awards in London on November 9.

Utilitywise became the first North East firm to list on the stock exchange in five years when they listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in June.

The firm, which helps businesses get more value from their energy contracts by reducing energy costs, will compete against Chinese mining services group Rare Earths Global, software company WANdisco and Sacoven for the title.

The firm’s listings will be judged on how well they managed shareholder expectation, how well the issue was priced, liquidity in the aftermarket and share price performance as well as areas like communication and strategy implementation. The Shares Awards will take place at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair.

Adam Thompson, chief operating officer at Utilitywise, said: “It’s great news for both Utilitywise and the profile of North East businesses as whole that we’ve been shortlisted for the shares award.

“This is a very exciting time for Utilitywise and we plan to continue developing and growing the company from our base in the region. With strong revenue visibility, a unique product offering backed up by our own proprietary IT and our outstanding employees, the board look to the future with great confidence.”

The business, started in 2006 by father and son Geoff and Adam Thompson, advises firms how to manage their energy costs. It has around 10,000 business clients, manages more than 50,000 energy meters and employs around 300 people with staff numbers set to rise by between 100 and 150 in the next year to 18 months.

Utilitywise, which raised £6.86m from its share placing in June, reported revenues of £11.7m and pre-tax profits of £3.5m for 2011 and analyst FinnCap has a £25m revenue target and £6.6m profit figure for 2012/13.