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posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday July 25 2017, @12:35AM   Printer-friendly
from the short-circuit dept.

Consumers in the UK could save billions of pounds thanks to major changes in the way electricity is made, used and stored, the government has said.

New rules will make it easier for people to generate their own power with solar panels, store it in batteries and sell it to the National Grid.

If they work, consumers will save £17bn to £40bn by 2050, according to the government and energy regulator Ofgem.

The rules are due to come into effect over the next year.

They will reduce costs for someone who allows their washing machine to be turned on by the internet to maximise use of cheap solar power on a sunny afternoon.

And they will even support people who agree to have their freezers switched off for a few minutes to smooth demand at peak times.

They'll also benefit a business that allows its air-conditioning to be turned down briefly to help balance a spell of peak energy demand on the National Grid.

Among the first to gain from the rule changes will be people with solar panels and battery storage. At the moment they are charged tariffs when they import electricity into their home or export it back to the grid.

It can't be a move welcomed by utilities.


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Tuesday July 25 2017, @01:35AM (5 children)

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 25 2017, @01:35AM (#543965) Journal

    Is it a law that prevents you from getting panels? Might be in place to keep homeowners from selling too much electricity to the utilities.

    Here's another problem: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-solar-subsidy-20151130-story.html [latimes.com]

    And another: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-ca-approves-new-costs-solar-owners-2016jan28-story.html [sandiegouniontribune.com]

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  • (Score: 2) by mhajicek on Tuesday July 25 2017, @03:41AM (4 children)

    by mhajicek (51) on Tuesday July 25 2017, @03:41AM (#543989)

    I bet he's talking about a subsidy.

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    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by bob_super on Tuesday July 25 2017, @05:39AM (3 children)

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday July 25 2017, @05:39AM (#544025)

      Nope, SCE refuses to connect panels to the grid (and set up net metering) if they exceed 110% of your usage. We wouldn't want individuals to actually feed the grid too much (and by grid, I mean all my power would all go 20ft into my neighbour’s house)
      Since I only use an average of 300W, they don't want to bother. I can buy the panels and a battery, but I can't get a 3kW system (planning for future A/C) connected to the grid because I'm not wasteful enough.

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Whoever on Tuesday July 25 2017, @06:04AM (1 child)

        by Whoever (4524) on Tuesday July 25 2017, @06:04AM (#544035) Journal

        I think that you will find that it's 110% of the past 12 months of use, so installing A/C and running it for a few months won't help you: by the time it's installed and running, the summer will mostly be over and you won't be using the A/C.

        • (Score: 2) by tibman on Tuesday July 25 2017, @05:30PM

          by tibman (134) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday July 25 2017, @05:30PM (#544249)

          Maybe he needs to buy a heater too. Run both. Warm toes and cool breeze on his face.

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      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Tuesday July 25 2017, @06:09AM

        by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 25 2017, @06:09AM (#544037) Journal

        This is America. Maybe it's time for you to engage in that most American of traditions: the lawsuit.

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