Octopus Energy launches new off-peak tariff for domestic heat pumping

Tariff could save a household with a heat pump £315 a year compared to using a gas boiler, Octopus claims.

Octopus Energy has unveiled plans to launch a new off-peak tariff which it claims could save households with heat pumps £315 a year compared to heating their homes with standard gas boilers.

The new off-peak rate – part of the energy supplier's ‘Cosy Octopus' heat pump tariff– is being made available from 1 July, enabling customers with heat pumps to keep their homes warm for an average of 11p per kilowatt-hour (kWh) between 10pm and midnight, it announced today.

The new tariff also adds an extra evening window for reduced rates in addition to the existing off-peak rates offered in the morning and afternoon, said Octopus Energy, which added that it was also lowering rates across the entire tariff by 10 per cent.

As a result, the firm claimed ‘Cosy Octopus' amounted to the cheapest smart heat pump tariff available on the UK market, with three of the tariff's off-peak windows priced roughly 50 per cent below the new rate on a standard variable tariff (SVT).

Taken altogether, it estimated the average customer on its Cosy tariff could save as much as £315 a year on heating costs when compared to a customer with a fossil gas boiler on a standard variable tariff.

"Heat pumps are ushering in a new era in heating – helping us to end our addiction to dirty gas boilers and moving us towards a clean, cheap heating system," said Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, chief product officer at Octopus Energy.

"We're always looking for new ways to reward customers who are choosing clean tech and, by that, are getting the country closer to a green, flexible energy system. And we'll keep innovating relentlessly to bring the costs of green heating down even further."

The new average rates in the Cosy tariff include a daily electricity standing charge of 58.03p; off-peak rates between 4am and 8am, 1pm and 4pm, and 10pm to midnight of 11p per kWh; a peak rate between midnight and 4am and 8am to 1pm of 32p per kWh; and a rate of 22p per kWh for the rest of the day, according to Octopus.

It came as Octopus Energy also this week revealed that it has fitted more than 100,000 'Home Mini' devices in households across the UK over the past 18 months.

The devices connect both with a customer's smart meter and their smart phone to provide data updates every 10 seconds on how much electricity their home is importing and exporting in real-time, in a bid to help users better manage their energy use and bills, the firm explained.

"The Home Mini is a game-changing first – home-grown British tech designed and developed in-house by a world-class hardware team that gives customers more control over their energy usage," said Deyra Robinson, lead engineer at Octopus Energy.

"Demand for it is off the charts – tens of thousands are already embracing its user-friendly design. We're now turbocharging the rollout so everyone who wants one can get one, hassle-free."