People to be paid to reduce energy use during peak times to avoid blackouts

[expressman33]

People could receive up to £6 per kilowatt hour (kWh) saved, reports suggest. https://metro.co.uk/2022/08/21/energy-c ... -17220391/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-62626908

[Beachboy]

I would happily consider doing my washing or using the dishwasher etc. at off peak times if it meant cheaper energy bills. It seems a good idea to have the choice offered.

[Sarah]

£6 per kilowatt hour (kWh) seems an absurdly high figure, e.g. compared to Economy 7 which discounts a fraction of the unit rate for approximately 7 hours, rather than a multiple of it!

So, I'd be surprised if the potential savings are anywhere near that... if they are, I dread to think how serious the risk of blackouts must have become!

[Richard Frost]

There is already a plan in place for industry to be paid to shut down in stages should the need for energy rationing be necessary. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... r_2014.pdf
This seems to me to be a bit OTT given that a few weeks ago the government was saying there was no shortage and no need to worry about a SHORTAGE of energy.

This seems like a plan to mitigate the cost rather then about shortages unless we are being seriously lied to by our masters.

This is much like the plan posted sometime ago by the OP who suggested that prices were going to go up at peak times regulated by Smart Meters. See this thread from May last year viewtopic.php?f=22&t=90073&hilit=Smart+meter

The fact is that the rise of Smart Meters is enabling selective prices to become operational. Whether that is good bad or otherwise is a matter for the individual.

is this https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-62604653.amp evidence of the Government misleading us over possible upcoming shortages

Downing Street has insisted households and businesses will not face blackouts this winter, telling them not to feel they should cut down on energy use.

[blythburgh]

Not got a smart meter but do often do the washing later in the evening or early in the morning. So helping to balance load on electric supply but no monetary benefit to me

[macliam]

It might help if my smart meter monitor actually worked!

After yesterdays Looonnnnggg "chat" with Bulb, still no acknowledgement email or the promised help.....

As usual, tick in the box exercise. Quality doesn't matter......

[xrppzi]

We're in a similar situation - moved 2 years ago, smart meter already installed, elecricity company tried to take it over and say they can't - needs a new bit that's not available at present!

So how many people, I wonder, have got smart meters that don't work? I would suspect it's quite a proportion.

[blythburgh]

We're in a similar situation - moved 2 years ago, smart meter already installed, elecricity company tried to take it over and say they can't - needs a new bit that's not available at present!

So how many people, I wonder, have got smart meters that don't work? I would suspect it's quite a proportion.

There are two types of smart meter. The older ones do not allow you to move to a new supplier and if you do then they revert to being a dumb meter. The newer ones allow you to move suppliers and still have a smart meter

[Richard Frost]

We're in a similar situation - moved 2 years ago, smart meter already installed, elecricity company tried to take it over and say they can't - needs a new bit that's not available at present!

So how many people, I wonder, have got smart meters that don't work? I would suspect it's quite a proportion.

There are two types of smart meter. The older ones do not allow you to move to a new supplier and if you do then they revert to being a dumb meter. The newer ones allow you to move suppliers and still have a smart meter

Irelevant how many types of meter there are. Fact is technology is not up to the job and regardless of the meter, a lot of the time it does not work.

[macliam]

Yes, it's yet another example of wated money, just to suggest progress. All that is important is the roll-out, because costs are recoverable..... once you agree to a smart meter, it's tick in the box, move on..... As in my case the job is only half complete, or the much-vaunted monitor doesn't work..... but no matter, the box is ticked. If the meterwas not recording usage, it would soon get fixed..... but if it's just an inconvenience to the consumer..... so what?

Remember the wasted billions on the "best ever" test and trace system? Remember the money wasted on the NHS computer system, or similar projects for the police and emergency services? Goodness knows how many green energy projects are pushed through that don't have a cat in hell's chance of actually producing cost-effective energy overall..... it's all smoke and mirrors by governments whose answer to any issue is to splurge public money on it..... with minimal oversight. the latest idea was the "grant" towards heat pumps as a replacement for gas boilers - regardless of the fact that retrofitted heat pumps are rarely an efficient choice in old housing stock....

I suspect the question should be "how many people have smart meters that work properly"? - and the number, as a percentage of those installed, might be a nasty surprise.