Outgoing Octopus / Generation Payments

[Deleted User]

I'm going round in circles trying to work this out from the website - I've probably misread or missed something or I'm overthinking it. Hope you can help....

I am an Agile customer. I have solar panels which were installed in 2014 and get FIT generation and export payments from EDF. If I switched to Outoging Octopus for the export payments would I still get the generation payments from somewhere and would these payments come from Octopus or EDF?

And how are the Outgoing Octopus payments made - as a monthly credit to your account?

Sorry if this question has been asked before, I've reached brain overload and can't find an earlier answer.

Thanks, Mike

MWT

[Deleted User] said:

I am an Agile customer. I have solar panels which were installed in 2014 and get FIT generation and export payments from EDF. If I switched to Outoging Octopus for the export payments would I still get the generation payments from somewhere and would these payments come from Octopus or EDF?

You can leave your FiT where it is or move it to Octopus, both work, but you do have to give up your deemed export.

The Outgoing Octopus payments credit to your account each time you get a bill for your imports.

[Deleted User]

Thanks @MWT will follow up with Octopus. For some reason when I looked at it before I convinced myself I'd lose the generation payments but now I don't understand why I though that, which is what has been confuing me.

[Deleted User]

[Deleted User] said:

I'm going round in circles trying to work this out from the website - I've probably misread or missed something or I'm overthinking it. Hope you can help....

I am an Agile customer. I have solar panels which were installed in 2014 and get FIT generation and export payments from EDF. If I switched to Outoging Octopus for the export payments would I still get the generation payments from somewhere and would these payments come from Octopus or EDF?

And how are the Outgoing Octopus payments made - as a monthly credit to your account?

Sorry if this question has been asked before, I've reached brain overload and can't find an earlier answer.

Thanks, Mike

You can agree to forego deemed exports in favour of actual SEG payments. You retain the FIT generation payments. It is easier to administrate if you transfer your FIT contract to Octopus. You have the right to revert back to deemed export payments after 12 months.

SEG payments are credited to your Octopus account each month. Bear in mind that before it agrees to SEG payments, Octopus will want to see your MCS certificate and confirmation that the DNO is aware of your installation. It will then apply for an export MPAN for your smart meter. Depending on your DNO, this process can take some months.

[Deleted User]

I am on metered export with EDF at the moment but I send them readings quarterly and they don't pick them up automatically from the smart meter. It's always been like this, i.e. the smart data pre dates the metered export. Does being on metered export mean I'll already have an export MPAN? Thanks Mike.

[Deleted User]

[Deleted User] said:

I am on metered export with EDF at the moment but I send them readings quarterly and they don't pick them up automatically from the smart meter. It's always been like this, i.e. the smart data pre dates the metered export. Does being on metered export mean I'll already have an export MPAN? Thanks Mike.

Each smart meter can have two MPANs: one for import and the other for export. Your EDF statement should show both MPANs if the smart meter is being used for export payments. Where are you getting the export reading from? If you are giving them the reading off the solar generation meter then you are not on metered exports.

[Deleted User]

Hi the export reading comes from the smart meter and I have to take it manually and submit it at the same time as the reading from the generation meter. The EDF statement for the FIT (completely independent of the bills I used to get as an EDF customer) shows the smart meter serial number but no MPAN. I wonder if I scroll through the meter settings I'll see a second MPAN? 

[Deleted User]

As an aside, the solar system came with the house and other than a FIT agreement (now in my name) I don't have any paperwork such as the MCS certification or anything from the DNO. The MCS certification is shown on the FIT agreement and I have applied for the copy. Does having a FIT agreement imply that the DNO must be aware of the system?

[Deleted User]

[Deleted User] said:

As an aside, the solar system came with the house and other than a FIT agreement (now in my name) I don't have any paperwork such as the MCS certification or anything from the DNO. The MCS certification is shown on the FIT agreement and I have applied for the copy. Does having a FIT agreement imply that the DNO must be aware of the system?

Not necessarily. All arrays under the FIT scheme were under 16amps per phase so the installer was only required to notify the DNO after the installation was complete: many didn’t bother.

Why are you giving EDF actual smart meter export readings when the FIT Scheme, in most cases, uses just the index reading recorded by the solar generation meter? That is, you are paid for every kWh that your system generates and 50% of the actual generation as export payments. Were you notified of a policy change?

Your supplier can only access export readings from your smart meter if there is an export MPAN. EDF would have to apply to the DNO for this number.

You could always ring the DNO and ask if an export MPAN has been allocated to your meter. 

[Deleted User]

Hi, I was originally receiving deemed export payments based on 50% of the generation. When I had the smart meter installed I requested a switch to metered export which was beneficial to me and in any event EDF were in the process of moving smart meter customers on to metered export. Their system at the time involved giving them export readings taken manually from the smart meter in the same way you would have done if you had a separate export meter. Not sure if this is still the system or if things have moved on in the last year or so, have never bothered to query it because the effort involved in putting an additional reading that I have anyway into a web form that I'm completing anyway is trivial. Hope that makes sense?

(Metered export was beneficial to me because I could buy electricity overnight for less than I received for exporting during the day so I'm better off exporting. Even now, when I'm paying more per kWh than I'm receiving, I still export more than 50% of my solar energy because even with hot water heating I'm a very low energy user when the most energy is being generated)

[Deleted User]

Thanks again for you help with this @[Deleted User]

I've just been in touch with National Grid who are my DNO (formerly Western Power Distribution) and they confirm that the system has been correctly registered but there is no export MPAN. Because of the age of the sysem (2014) they have referred this to a local team to progress. I'll update this post with more info as I get it in case it is of interest.