Export rate being reduced, will we need to change tariffs?

[ericmark]

So, from March 1st, our Outgoing Octopus variable export rate will move to 12p/kWh. I know this isn’t the news you want to hear. However, at 12p, this rate is still more than double what we offered pre-crisis and remains one of the most competitive “no-strings” export rates on the market.

12p is still more than the 8.5p I pay for off-peak import, so will not change the fact that allowing the battery to fully recharge with off-peak tariff, does not matter, as will be getting more export once the sun comes out.

But this may tip the balance for some tariffs. My inverter, as far as I can see, can't be programmed to have x kWh left in battery at 4 pm, and I would need that to ensure I have enough power to so not using grid power until 7 pm at the earliest. So Agile is for me taking a chance on what the weather will be like. To be sure I will not run out of battery before 7 pm, I would need a third or maybe fourth battery, at over £1000 each, not really worth it.

Since Government’s closure of the Feed-In Tariff scheme, the rate for feed in has slowly increased from 5.5p/kWh then 7.5p/kWh but since I have had solar panels, September 2023 the 15p/kWh has been on offer. I have not known anything else.

So maybe I need to change tariffs, I think it is just a case of having to simply accept the change, but what do others think about which tariff to go for?

 

[nero44]

I received the same email and have similar considerations as you've written above.

I did however bite the bullet a few months ago and bought another battery. Nominal storage is now 9.8kwh. We are a small household and even in winter we never run out of storage, but this will change later in the year, when upgrading a few things. We intend to buy a tumle dryer and induction stove. So that will be another 2-3kwh extra on days where both are used. From April to October I reckon we should be fine. For the winter month.. time will tell but I will re-evaluate when we are at that stage..

As if now I will stay on the agile. 12p is still pretty decent in my opinion. Some of the reasoning is also their excellent hassle free customer service (I've been with quite few other providers over the past 15 years), so the hurdle for me to switch to another provider is high.

 

[ericmark]

I started with 3.2 kWh, and then doubled up and now have 6.4 kWh, I use around 12 kWh so in summer with 6 kW of panels I am normally OK, what I found was a problem is the battery would only charge at 2 kW so with a 5 kW inverter I was seeing export even when battery not fully charged, and it would discharge at 3 kW so also importing when loads of battery left. So doubling up made sense, but now to spend £1000 to move off-peak to peak time, I think around 10 years at least before it is paid off, so not really worth getting an extra battery. Specially as we have no idea what changes to electric charges there will be in the future.

I feel the same with an EV, may be able to charge at 6–8.5 p/kWh as it stands today, but will the bubble burst? If it does, then will also lose the second hand valve. Leasing an EV OK, if doing the right mileage, but either too little, or too much so need to charge away from home, and they don't work out.

The solar panels with first 20 months with no export payment due to British Gas messing us around has already resulted in taking a lot longer that it should have taken had they not messed me around.

 

[nero44]

battery would only charge at 2 kW so with a 5 kW inverter I was seeing export even when battery not fully charged,

you mean when the sun is out and you get 6kw from the panels, 5kwh go to battery and 1kwh exported (/lost in your first 20 months)? Then a larger battery would not change anything. My inverter is only 3.6kw, which is annoying as in the evening I could be forced to draw from grid even though I have plenty of capacity in batteries. In hindsight, should've pressed the installer for a larger one with an export limiter so the G98 is ok...

and it would discharge at 3 kW so also importing when loads of battery left.

But that should not be the case with a 5kw inverter no?

Maybe it's settings? I find "Energy Stats" allows you to customise/check easiliy.

 

[ericmark]

The 6 kW solar panels rarely can produce 6 kW, so the 5 kW inverter means on the odd time it can produce 6 kW all over 5 kW is lost. In the main we use less than a kW, so the extra 4 kW will now go to charge the batteries, but before the second battery only 2 kW went to charge batteries as that's the batteries limit, if using no power in the house then 4 kW to batteries and 1 kW export, but that situation is rare.

This is typical

The battery is charged, and we also have washing machines etc, running during the off-peak, then the battery slowly discharges until the sun comes out, and then recharged with enough energy to see us until the off-peak is available again. But some days simply no sun.

So we run out of battery, and we don't want to have to watch the weather like Hawks, deciding when things can be run, if we had a bigger array, 25 kW and larger battery 20 kWh then it may be worth exporting 4 pm to 7 pm but we a little more than out needs in summer and a little less in winter, we are not trying to make money with the panels and battery, just reduce our bills.

I have looked at the balcony kits

once one has an MPAN number, unless one went daft, who would know if you were exporting to the grid from the roof, or the balcony, and no installation cost.