Octopus Energy has teamed up with UK Power Networks to offer households free energy when there is excess renewable power. Participating customers will get free electricity when there is surplus electricity on the local grid from abundant renewables. Based on UK Power Networks’ forecasts, Octopus will send customers a notification of the times they can “power-up” their homes for free a day in advance. In recent years, the transmission grid has begun to face challenges of imbalance when energy supply exceeds demand (such as sunny or windy weather leading to excess renewably-generated power).
Grid operators like UK Power Networks are looking into alternative means of balancing the grid, to avoid turning off these renewables generators during surplus. Octopus has “long championed a far better solution” that involves unlocking this energy to benefit customers, reduce consumption at other times, avoid wastage, stabilise the grid and put money back into customer’s pockets. Last winter, Octopus spearheaded the first “demand response” project ever run by National Grid’s Demand Flexibility Service (DFS). Nearly three quarters of a million Octopus Energy customers signed up to use less at times of stress on the grid and diverted £5.4m to UK householders rather than gas power plants. Director of distribution system operator at UK Power Networks Sotiris Georgiopoulos said: “In response to growing volumes of renewable power, UK Power Networks is the first distribution system operator to call for ‘demand turn up’. “We’re delighted to have seen a strong response to the requirements we issued in December, including from innovators like Octopus. “Tapping into customer flexibility means we can connect more renewable energy, keeping costs down for our customers.”
Credits: renews.biz [Image: Octopus Energy]