British Gas has announced it will reward customers for helping take pressure off the grid by using a reduced amount of electricity during busy times. The UK's largest energy supplier is the latest company to offer this scheme, and it's hoped that 100,000 people will sign up.
Peak hours are defined as 4-7pm, when the demand for electricity is the highest. With people getting paid to reduce their usage, it's hoped that it won't put as much strain on the supplies.
Customers with smart meters will be sent emails asking them if they want to take part, British Gas said.
"The electricity grid is facing increased pressure and smart technology plays a key role in managing peak demand – reducing consumption has the added benefit of helping consumers save on their energy bills," said chief executive Chris O’Shea.
"We are exploring how to make this scheme work best for our customers so that it fits in with their habits around the home. This approach to help manage residential electricity demand is likely to become a major feature of the market in years to come. We’ll be taking learnings from this stage with the aim of using our scale to roll out to our wider customer base."
Under the scheme, households will be paid around £4 for every unit of electricity that they reduce their consumption by during specific times. Households will be sent a text by 6pm the day before to let them know when to switch off their ovens and TVs and go for an hour-long walk.
They can then come back home and use their home again as normal. There is no obligation to take part. For a household it means moving the time that you turn on certain appliances, rather than not switching them on at all. It could mean that by switching your oven on an hour later than normal you are paid £4.
It's also positive news for the energy grid. It can tap into these households on days when there will be enough electricity for everyone to do what they need, but perhaps not all at the same time.
If the grid is able to ask people to reduce their consumption during certain hours, it will therefore not need to pay through its teeth to get electricity from other sources – such as importing it from France.
British Gas’ decision comes just days after the scheme was almost run live for the first time since launching earlier this month. There have been three tests of the system to date, with households helping to take the stress off the grid during those hours.
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