OVO to Octopus Energy

EneryMiser

For what it's worth I have used Octopus Energy for a while and a neighbour is moving to Octopus from OVO.

It seems "likely" that Octopus will be able to adopt the Securemeters Liberty 100 SMETS1 Smart meter once "on supply" but only if Octopus are prompted to do this.

Currently it seems the Smart meter is required to go dumb, manual readings then be taken. Not a bad idea, to take manual readings anyway. However OVO already have access to data from the meter.

The dumbed down meter then passes to Octopus and readings can then manually be added to Octopus via their customer online account. This stage of progress has been confirmed.

The adoption of the Smart meter back into the Octopus's billing sytem, but only if prompted (by the customer), to allow remote readings to be collected, I am waiting to confirm.

Does anyone have knowledge of successful Liberty 100 supplier moves.

I have wanted to get my 30 min usage data but it seems way too much hassle for Octopus to provide despite this being promised when I agreed to move!

matelodave

Although it's the same type of smart meter it doesn't necessarily follow that OVO and Octopus use the same or similar communication protocols and databases.

They may not use the same communications network or data collection facility either which could entail physically replacing the sim card in the meter and updating/changing it's firmware.

EneryMiser

Thanks "matelodave" I have an inkling, hence the comment about to be confirmed, that a number of companies use Secure meter's own back-end data base and common comms protocols.

I assume their billing platform then pulls in the consumption data.

If this is the case, a common third party back end, it would explain the potential for these meters to be migrated. They are able to swap them over the air OTA from pre-pay to credit mode.

I guess it is unlikely they would bother changing the SIM card or comms module if they were not already compatible.

jiminycricket1922

Octopus told me today that as the user is now "on supply" it was just a formality to allow Octopus to adopt "the asset". Industry speak for the consumer's meters.

The IHD (in house display) Pippit 500, I believe, will again then show something related to the meter and or consumption. I will report back on the full timescales when I have verified it first hand.

One or two things do seem now become to reveal themselves.

Such as that the data collection and storage of consumer data for some suppliers is
carried out using the same communications module and SIM protocols etc.

Supplier 1 data would not be made available to supplier 2.

However a consumer were, they to have wrestled their consumption data from supplier 1 when there were a customer might be able to change supplier (to a different supplier also using the common "head end" meter management service). The meter, during transition, is defaulted back to dumb mode but once "on supply" the consumer can then request the meter regain its "Smartness". So a small period of smart data - midnight snapshots - or 30 min data would be lost.

In the near future in seems possible 3rd party data capture using the Smartmeter's own HAN (home area network) might be possible. If the consumption data was being captured using the HAN this consumption data capture functionality would remain but tariff data derived from the meter would not be available until the new supplier "adopted the asset".

I have yet in check in detail what the IHD does display when the meter is "made dumb" remote data collection disabled. I'm not sure if the Liberty 100 caches much or any data while "made dumb".