Neso urges EV charging on sunny afternoons
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- Neso is calling on households and businesses to increase electricity use during periods of high renewable generation, such as sunny afternoons, to make better use of excess wind and solar power.
- Octopus Energy and British Gas have confirmed plans to participate in demand-flexibility initiatives, offering discounted or free electricity during times of renewable surplus.
- British Gas estimates its 'PeakSave' and 'Super Sunday' tariffs have saved over 1 million customers £45m since 2023 by incentivizing off-peak usage when renewables are abundant.
- Octopus Energy says its early flexibility schemes have saved 2 million households around £11m, including £3m from offering free electricity during high-renewable periods.
- Danfoss estimates that if new datacentres operate flexibly just 1% of the time by 2035, they could connect without overloading the grid, highlighting the role of business in demand response.
- The UK grid faced nearly £1.5bn in constraint payments last year—costs passed to consumers—when wind and solar farms were paid to turn off due to excess supply.
Why it matters: Households can cut energy bills by shifting usage to sunny afternoons, while reducing the £1.5bn annual cost of paying renewables to shut down. This flexibility delays costly grid upgrades and cuts reliance on gas, which sets higher electricity prices during peak demand.
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