Cost of electric supply

[Buckman]

No wonder our electric cost us so much! Interesting article from BBC. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdedjnw8e85o

 

[otherclive]

Didn’t we go around this buoy not too long ago? The sooner electric can be divorced from gas prices and payments the better. But how the Government can address that doesn’t seem to be discussed. But certainly more renewables plus nuclear will move us in that direction.

 

[birdman101]

Yes I had only just read this and ridiculous time the industry got its act together

 

[Tobes]

The problem (as the article says) is not so much about the industry as about the regulatory framework that defines the wholesale pricing cost and balancing mechanism. As I type this, the whole of Scotland has zero gas generation, and yet has its price set by the highest gas generation being used (likely in south Wales right now).

 

[ProfJohnL]

Its a political issue rather than an engineering or economic one. The cost of paying these producers to not produce should be put into upgrading the nations internal grid so that regardless of where the power is produced, the power demand is met from the lowest cost generators.

 

[Oscarmax]

We used to be on Octopus Agile tariff at times they would pay us to import electric, we have solar panels, battery and an EV charger, this worked fine in the winter when it was windy and our solar panel were mere roof ornaments, in the spring and summer we were generating far more consumed adding to the problem.

We have switched back to Octopus Go they now pay 15p @ kWh for export, we charge the PHEV and solar battery up off peak at night 8.5 p @ kWh balancing out the grid, this financially works for us in the winter, however in the spring/summer, again we are adding to the problem.

An alternative is to allow the energy companies to control your solar battery to balance the grid, somehow I just don't fancy that.

 

[Buckman]

Maybe if we had only one organisation managing the National Grid, distribution and supply it would save money? At present there are so many costs built into the cost of a kwh even before the consumer pays, is eye watering. Several or more different organisations get paid out of the cost of a kwh of power. Plus the cost of the commission is built in the price charged to the end consumer.

 

[Oscarmax]

The electric standing charge is the majority of our electric bill.

 

[Mr Plodd]

The electric standing charge is the majority of our electric bill.

Yep, that all we have paid since the end of March, solar panels and battery storage have kept us well supplied, and we have even been paid for the excess we have exported.