Octopus saving sessions

Chrysalis

mmmmikey said:

Just had an email from Octopus about this:

"As one of the customers who joined Saving Sessions last winter, I wanted to give you an update on it, and ask for your help.

 

Saving Sessions’ future is in jeopardy.

This Friday 22nd November, the energy regulator Ofgem are deciding:

 

- Whether the service should continue at all
- How much reward customers should receive for taking part

 

The proposal they’re assessing would reduce the reward you receive by ~90%. Where previously, we typically paid you £2.25 per unit you saved, it would be more like 22p per unit instead."

"Why might the Saving Sessions rewards change or end?  

Saving Sessions is part of an initiative from the government owned “National Energy System Operator” (NESO): the Demand Flexibility Service. That means that NESO factor in your efforts when balancing the grid, and they give us (and all energy suppliers) the funding to reward you for taking part.

They’ve arrived at the lower reward because that’s the sort of amount they pay a gas plant to turn on to cover the busiest time of day (it does vary - as would future Saving Sessions rewards). But it’s not a fair comparison – they pay the gas plants a lot of money “just in case”, as well as the per-usage costs. There’s no proposal to do the same for customers.

 

Saving Sessions has proven that our energy system can be more self-sufficient, sustainable, and rewarding for citizens. It’s not the time to stamp all that progress out.

 

The UK energy system needs to invest in that future, instead of relying on more of the same imported fossil fuels that triggered a once-in-a-generation energy crisis just a few years ago.

 

We think Saving Sessions has been a massive success: saving a small gas-powered station’s worth of power each time the grid needed it, and hundreds of tonnes of carbon emissions. 

 

Closer to home, it reduced your bills by £10 million over the past two winters, and raised £400,000 in donations for customers struggling with their bills, and not to mention potentially thousands more family board games played, books opened, dogs walked, hobbies picked up (and, lets be honest, pints downed)."

Thoughts anyone?

If anything it needed to go up, the main issue with saving sessions from my perspective is it didnt reward those who consistently keep heavy usage outside of peak hours, in fact it encourages them to shift load to peak hours daily, so when a saving session comes along they can profit from it, it made no sense.

I suspect industry players who didnt like the scheme lobbied Ofgem and this may be the result.

Checked my email history, and never got this email.

born_again

matt_drummer said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

matt_drummer said:

Based on the last few days, I could just turn my heat pump off and cover most of it!

Joking, of course!

That is actually what we do when there are saving sessions

I don't know what it has been like where you live but the SCOP has taken a bit of a hammering here the last few days!

And more to come.

The first bit of proper winter with my replacement heat pump, a learning curve again!

I used to have hobbies before I got a heat pump!

Just the same as any other heating source really.

This is just the sort of weather required to give the system a good test to see how it keeps the house & the cost. 

matt_drummer

born_again said:

Just the same as any other heating source really.

This is just the sort of weather required to give the system a good test to see how it keeps the house & the cost. 

Not really is it?

I don't think the efficiency of gas and oil boilers, nsh's or any other direct electric heating varies much with the outside temperature.

My heating is 650% efficient right now but in a couple of hours it will probably only be 400% and possibly less.

If I had a gas boiler it would be around 95% efficient now and it will still be about 95% efficient later on today, and any other day. My direct electric heating would still be 100% efficient.

As for cost, even at a COP of 3.5 my heating and DHW still only costs about 2p per kWh so quite a bit better than anything else I could use!

born_again

matt_drummer said:

born_again said:

Just the same as any other heating source really.

This is just the sort of weather required to give the system a good test to see how it keeps the house & the cost. 

Not really is it?

I don't think the efficiency of gas and oil boilers, nsh's or any other direct electric heating varies much with the outside temperature.

My heating is 650% efficient right now but in a couple of hours it will probably only be 400% and possibly less.

If I had a gas boiler it would be around 95% efficient now and it will still be about 95% efficient later on today, and any other day. My direct electric heating would still be 100% efficient.

As for cost, even at a COP of 3.5 my heating and DHW still only costs about 2p per kWh so quite a bit better than anything else I could use!

Good point 👍

End of the day, having a period like this is good to see how well they perform & give a better view of the running costs.

Wish I had one 😒But even with the grant too much for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1htdAcoctKo

t0rt0ise

Should be a saving session today.. 5 till 6. Octopus bid accepted.

debitcardmayhem

t0rt0ise said:

Should be a saving session today.. 5 till 6. Octopus bid accepted.

2 bids accepted @ 900/MW most regions perhaps 60-75p

debitcardmayhem

just got emai 72p 576points 5-6

born_again

Just got email.
Don't think will save much given still ZERO & snow covered outside. Might manage a few lights off. 

Slinky

Which areas are you in? Nothing received here yet (Eastern)

debitcardmayhem

Slinky said:

Which areas are you in? Nothing received here yet (Eastern)

I’m eastern