Smart meter customers face time-of-day charging plan
By Paul Homewood
You were warned!!
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Millions of households with smart meters face paying more for their electricity at the busiest times of day under regulator plans.
Ofgem is consulting on introducing a “dynamic” energy price cap to meet the demand of net zero, despite repeated assurances from the Government that smart meter technology would not result in more expensive energy bills for consumers.
The energy watchdog said it would look to “encourage consumer flexibility” by basing the energy price cap around the wholesale costs of electricity throughout the day.
The plans include allowing suppliers to charge more for electricity when the grid is at its busiest, as Britons move away from conventional gas boilers and adopt electric-powered heat pumps and electric vehicles.
Proposals would scrap the energy price cap – currently £1,690 a year – and effectively switch the entire country to a 1970s-style “time-of-use” tariff that charges different prices throughout the day.
This would either be introduced in weekly “time bands” that are divided into more expensive peak and cheaper off-peak periods, or linked directly to half-hourly wholesale market prices.
Ofgem admitted the latter proposal would risk “exposing customers to wholesale price variability” and that “many consumers may struggle to engage with constantly evolving pricing”.
The Energy Price Cap should never have been introduced. But now energy users with a smart meter may be faced with a fait accompli, finding it difficult to find any supplier prepared to offer a fixed price.
And one thing is absolutely certain – consumers will not be better off under any new system.
And as may experts are pointing out, many people need access to electricity all day. It is all very well for a household which is empty during the day, but what will happen to old people or mums with kids who need to heat their homes all day.
Indeed how many of these groups will even have access to the information needed to optimise pricing?
Worse still, this is not only about Time of Day pricing – wholesale prices can often peak at much higher levels for days on end when wind power is low in winter. There will be no escape from this peak pricing at times like this – everybody will end up paying.
If the government is intent on bringing in this policy, it must legislate for an opt out for anybody who wants to remain with a fixed price, and that should be set at an affordable level.
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NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT 
We have been warning for years that this was the intent of “smart” meters. Ofgem has been promoting the government’s Net Zero policy, whereas its remit is to protect customers. Here it is “Ofgem is Great Britain’s independent energy regulator. We work to protect energy consumers, especially vulnerable people, by ensuring they are treated fairly and benefit from a cleaner, greener environment.“
Last 6 words the key!
Ofgem has been given a net zero mandate. Jonathan Brearly has been quoted as saying this mandate
“underlines that net zero is the best option not only from a climate perspective, but to ensure a low cost energy future” and that the mandate “sends a clear message we must end our historic dependency on fossil fuels”
The man is a fool.
It’s on Ofgem’s web site front page…
“We are the energy regulator for Great Britain. We work to protect energy consumers, especially vulnerable people, by ensuring they are treated fairly and benefit from a cleaner, greener environment.”.
So are they there for customer protection, or as an environmentalist??
Seems they also haven’t heard of the ‘CO2 fertilisation effect’ that’s measurably greening the world.
Yes, those Assholes! … one just cannot (?) be civil towards them any longer. There are many small businesses up here where like part of ours, the consumption is NOT SOLELY for domestic use. so how are they going to sort that one out? No more ridiculous than the claim by E.on that I am GETTING 100% renewable electricity: Can just see it now: Auld Elec is running ap an doon thae wyres an makin’ room fur young Tricity to get past ( she is renewable, he is gettin’ past it ) D’ye think the Transformers ken the difference ?
Our Government provided E.on ( I didn’t want them at all ! ) are trying to force me onto Smart meters, and when I take time to wind them up via EMails I occasionally get a call from a young Pup or kitten with absolutely NO ( know-all ) IDEA and will not be told either ( IOW – they’ve swallowed some hymnbook) …
Take heart,
Almost four million smart meters in Great Britain are not working properly.
According to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (Desnez), 2.7 million were not operating in smart mode as of June 2023. It has since revised this figure to 4.31 million, citing reporting errors from a minority of suppliers.
At the end of last year, 3.98 million were faulty.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz9zqn77ezno
Thing is, will they just hike the price across the board for those of us who declined our energy supplier’s ‘invitation’ to have a smart [sic] meter fitted?
Sadly, I’d put money on that!
And our new ‘Gov’t’ will have The Millipede pushing us into energy poverty even further and faster.
Then frame their policy as a discount for non-peak smart meter users only? Quite likely.
Well we all knew that limiting electricity demand by high prices is the purpose of smart meters. OFGEM have lied for years, they should be ashamed of the way they have sided with net zero, rather than their original remit of protecting customers from price gouging.
Our peak demand is around 1700hrs to 1930hrs, so what happens to your heat pump, and the need to charge your BEV for a night out. Again the poorest will have to suffer by freezing and all this because of the stupid demonising of CO2 and banning of fossil fuels.
I do see riots and attacks from the newly created underclass on those charging BEVs and running heat pumps, when will common sense prevail?
Yes. I see a pair of bolt cutters to reduce local elec demand from EVs coming in useful. oh, and good rubber wellies to be safe.
For quite a period of time E.ON, my energy supplier was constantly bombarding me with emails and texts, even to the point of “arranging” on behalf the installation of a Smart Meter, during this fractious period I responded with emails stating that I believed that Demand Pricing was the ultimate goal, which although contained in a OFGEM report in 2017, E.ON strenuously denied, stating that I just did not “understand” the savings achievable, in the end, we agreed to disagree, despite both parties knowing that I was correct and Demand Pricing was on the cards.
The only thing about Smart Meters that is smart is their ability to change the unit price at the flick of a switch at source, increasing profits and tax revenue whilst giving people the stark choice options – Light, Heat, Eating.
And do not think OFGEM are on the side of the consumer, it was OFGEM who insisted on the meter standing charge being increased to increase revenue for the Energy suppliers who wanted more for less and this was “the best option”.
never mind time of day charging look out for demand reduction control through switching off for periods of time.
How can I invest in meter bypass kits? I see a great future for these.
A good thick length of copper cable and thick wellies.
A few years we were on holiday in Jamaica. One place we drove through had “jump leads” attached to the overhead power cables and down to the houses.
Yes I’ve seen the same when watching vast parts of Indian on telly. So many that I’m surprised the wires weren’t smoking.
Bypassing the meter must be on the up, my local radio station is running adverts stating that it is dangerous and if you know of anyone doing it please report them…..
I read somewhere that the actual cost on the smart meter will be controlled locally, depending on local sub station load, doing this would alleviate the need to rewire at street level.
Poor freezing people are going to take the meter bypass option, leading to substation trip out, then no one gets any power! Mission accomplished.
When electricity will be largely generated by renewables and hence chaotically intermittent as intended and with no plans for electricity storage, there will be no knowing in advance when there is either an oversupply or undersupply of electricity. It is a mistake to compare with the old day-time and night-time periods of thermal generation. How will the electricity industry and their customers deal with a situation where as the electricity supply drops to zero the price tend to infinity? Will consumers be expected to enter into their smart meter the maximum price they are prepared to pay? Will there be half hourly auctions? How much advance warning will be given before rolling blackouts? No wonder electricity retailers are so keen on renewables, they stand to make lots of money by turning a basic commodity into a money-making exercise.
Ofgem’s idea is to keep a price cap as now, but for it to vary (presumably in a predictable way) over the day.
We will be priced onto Smart meters! An expensive tariff will be put on non-smarts
With renewables you can’t manage supply so you must manage demand.
That’s a good way of putting it.
What exactly are the ‘demands of Net Zero’? Can we have some numbers ? Like in aviation for instance. Will a Turkish take off from Heathrow be British CO2 or Turkish? And how many civil servants required to count it.
I wonder if a “Smart” meter could control a stand-by generator so that one only bought electricity when it was cheaper that propane generated power? Assuming that winter was the time of highest price, the engine could provide heating too, which would make self-generation even more attractive.
If you work it out John, you can get a 47kG propane cylinder refill for £70 @ 5% VAT rate. That amounts to 650kWh of energy @ 11p per kWh. A good generator will manage 40% conversion efficiency so about 27.5p per kWh electricity. It’s quite a close run thing even now, however, Red Diesel is currently 80 per litre which is 10.7kWh or 7.5 per kWh so under 19p per kWh electricity.
I find it bloody ridiculous that it is possible to generate your own electricity on such a small scale much cheaper than the mains supply.
I find it bloody ridiculous that it is possible to generate your own electricity on such a small scale much cheaper than the mains supply.
Use the coolant circuit to heat your home (and your neighbours!)
Local CHP !
How long before home/private generators are banned?
John, just for a bit of a hobby/laugh a mate and I have recently built a wood gasifier to fuel a rough old diesel genny. Wood powered cars will rule.
Sorry again O/T but today I located another of the Met Office’s official climate recording stations. This one is in Gillingham Kent…….on the roof of Gillingham FC’s Priestfield Stadium.
Now I wonder which WMO classification that is??????
I also located this one on the end of a pole at the incredibly natural and highly representative natural location of…Folkestone Ski Centre
Here it is on google street view. It is on the grey metal pole just behind the blue Renault’s exhaust pipe. Of course all official Met Office sites meet the highest possible standards especially those expressly for “Climate Averages”
YCMIU
If you scroll to the right and then view the whole ski surface hidden by the cabin, it can be seen that the reflective heat from the ski surface on a hot day must be really significant. A crazy place to put a temperature gauge if you want a fair and honest representation of the true situation, which ……….. Oh dear, have I stumbled on the reason for fixing it there ……….
It was obvious they were going to use dumb meters for this (they’re only called smart because they’re smarter than the dumb idiots getting them)
The energy watchdog said it would look to “encourage consumer flexibility” by basing the energy price cap around the wholesale costs of electricity throughout the day.
IF a consumer wanted to be flexible . . . NO, they don’t. Won’t happen. No one is going to start checking rates before they turn something on.
In the next few years do not be surprised if the government makes it law for all properties to convert to smart meters.
The enabling legislation was in the recent Energy Act. They are entitled to break in to install a smart meter if the SoS says so.
It has just been announced on the BBC Today programme 6.30am Tuesday, that 4 Million Smart Meters are now not working properly, up by over 1 Million on last year.
See here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz9zqn77ezno
If 4 million are faulty, how many are working as expected?
The BBC says:
“According to Smart Energy GB, a non-profit organisation focusing on the benefits of smart meters, there are now almost 35 million smart meters in Great Britain and the ‘vast majority’ are operating as intended.
It said 88.6% were operating in smart mode at the end of 2023, up from 87.3% the previous year.”
“…when the grid is at its busiest…”
What a silly LIE. The high charging will kick in precisely when it is NOT busy, when there is low supply because the ruinables are idle. The PR language is meant to slyly put the blame on the consumer for being so greedy and feckless as to want power when it suits him.
Like all religious diktats in once tolerant societies, it will not take effect immediately, but, “Resistance is futile!”
According to the BBC radio yesterday, the high prices are all the fault of the gas power stations having to kick in intermittently when demand is high and ruinables are not doing much. You couldn’t make it up!
dave permalink
March 26, 2024 8:53 am
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Yes, it’s happy horseshit marketing. Just like:
a “dynamic” energy price cap to meet the demand of net zero
One wonders what failure looks like. Do the meters just get dumb? That may be what you want. “Fixed,” not failed.
I thought at first this might be an April Fools day joke, but apparently not. An extraordinary illustration of Davos man’s high-handed arrogance. Canada Backs Bill Gates’ Scheme to Block the Sun – Slay News
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Frank Bergman
The Canadian government has announced that the country will be investing millions of dollars in taxpayer money i… |
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They have been taken on a journey, also known as taken for a ride.
British Gas have been pushing peeksave this is supposed to give you half price electricity between 11am and 4pm every Sunday. So I thought I would give it a go. The result constant text messages telling me how wondaful peeksave is and reminding me to take advantage of it. Text when the period starts and when the period end. Not sure If I am supposed to use more electric to take advantage of it somehow. But then the saving would be less. The result was a alleged saving of £2.60 at the end of the month. I wonder how much it costs to administer and there is no way to check if my bill is really decreased by £2.60.
This was the plan all along–pricing followed by control. The control part comes in when they remotely turn off you ever-so-smart-meter cuz your usage is “too big for your allowed carbon footprint.”
There is more analysis of this at the Spectator:
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/youre-not-being-paranoid-smart-meters-are-out-to-get-you/
Was there anyone with half a brain cell who actually believed Smart meters were there to stop you having to read the meter? Probably several millions.
We actually do have meters here that can be addressed remotely. For communication, not control.
Pretty smart, eh?