Upgrading homes to support the energy the transition

Fuel poverty is a serious problem in the UK. Every day it forces more than 3 million households to make difficult decisions about what they can afford, and how they can live. 

Even for households that aren’t financially vulnerable, shocks in the energy market in recent years have meant that people of all backgrounds are having to think more about how much they spend on heating and powering their homes. 

We’re proud to help our customers by providing a £150 Warm Home Discount to the most vulnerable, setting up a £92m support package and writing off energy debt for those who are struggling, and offering support via the Priority Services Register. But we are also innovating constantly to get to the root of the problems people face before measures like these become necessary, and one solution we’re especially invested in is upgrading homes with green technologies. 

Green technologies can help customers pay less 

To take the Warm Home Discount (WHD) as an example, this annual assistance worth £150 helps many vulnerable customers in the UK heat their homes through winter, and is undoubtedly a good thing, but what if there was a more efficient way to help? 

We are currently in the early stages of a pilot in Coventry that will install battery storage into around 30 homes eligible for the WHD. Each battery costs roughly £3,000 to install, but paired with a smart meter and Time of Use tariff it will allow customers to buy electricity when it’s at its cheapest – such as at night or when renewable generators are at capacity – and use it when the price is higher. Over a domestic battery’s 20-year lifespan, this adds up to a saving of between £5,000 and £6,000, which is not only greater than the initial cost of the battery, but also the £3,000 that would be spent on the Warm Home Discount over the same period. 

This effectively means that by installing one piece of green technology in people’s homes we can lower their bills, decrease household emissions, and help balance the grid by encouraging consumers to use more off-peak electricity. And the same logic applies to another innovation that could help customers of all backgrounds enjoy greener electricity and lower bills: Energy on Subscription. 

By taking care of the upfront cost of installing devices such as heat pumps, solar PV, and battery storage, we can offer customers considerable monthly energy savings that can then go towards some or all of a monthly subscription covering the original installation. Spread over a number of years depending on how much customers can afford each month, this could allow them to spend less on heating and powering their homes while playing a crucial part in the energy transition. 

Upgrading homes for the future

Our aim is ultimately to help customers of all kinds play their part in the energy transition and enjoy cheaper electricity bills as a result. That's why we’re stepping up to tackle fuel poverty at the source, building our use case for supporting vulnerable customers with battery storage in Coventry, and paving the way for Energy on Subscription as a model that can be rolled out nationwide. 

To help upgrade as many homes as possible in the years to come, we want to work with the Government to encourage new opportunities for green innovation. This could be by offering green financing grants and guarantees to lenders, leading to lower interest rates on sustainable loans, or through updating the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) to allow third-party ownership of installed devices. Whatever the approach, there will be new challenges, opportunities, and innovations in the years to come, and we will continue to find the best solutions for our customers, the country, and the planet. 

To find out more, take a look at our recent article about Energy on Subscription.