Energy company launches EV tariff that could cut charging costs to £ 100 per year Bedford News

Energy supplier OVO has announced a new tariff exclusively for electric car owners, which could lower their home charging bills.

Following a trial earlier this year, the company is rolling out its Drive + Anytime tariff, saying it could reduce the cost of billing to £ 100 per year for the average driver.

Many energy companies offer specific rates for electric vehicles with lower rates for overnight charging, but OVO says its new deal is the only one that offers billing by “type of use” rather than “time of day”. ‘use”.

The system uses smart meters and a connected smartphone app to optimize charging through certain units and allows the supplier to separate regular household energy use from EV charging.

Drivers pay a flat rate of 5p / kWh for recharging their EV at any time of the day, against an average energy rate of 17.2p / kWh. OVO has calculated that for a driver covering the UK average of 7,400 miles and reaching four miles per kWh, that could mean a bill of just £ 100 per year.

Chris Russell, Managing Director of OVO Drive, commented: “Our trial in January was a real success and we are excited to roll out this pioneering new plan nationwide.

“We want to encourage the use of electric vehicles as a carbon-friendly lifestyle choice, and it should be easy and accessible – with the help of Kaluza’s cutting-edge technology, our new Drive + Anytime plan perfectly embodies this vision. . “

To provide drivers with cheaper charging, OVO uses software that tracks energy demand throughout the day and an app that allows drivers to control charging. Customers use the app to set a time when they want their car to be charged and the software optimizes charging to take advantage of cheaper low demand periods while ensuring that the target time is met. Customer accounts are then credited each month with the amount of electricity saved by smart EV charging.

However, the pricing and smart charging software is currently only compatible with two home wallboxes from supplier Indra, which means customers who already have other brands of home chargers cannot take advantage of the tariff.

Autumn Pray, Product Manager at Kaluza, Head of Software, said: “For the world to step up its response to the climate emergency and dramatically reduce energy emissions, we need to take advantage of the latest smart technologies at our fingertips. .

“The OVO Drive Anytime tariff is a great example of how we can make it easy for individual customers to become the engine of the energy transition – by rewarding people who trust the technology that enables a more resilient and greener energy system. . “