Octopus Go vs. Octopus standard?

[Technonotice]

I'll start with this - my name is Andrew, and I'm a nerd.

I have done a lot of looking around since deciding to make the switch to an EV and one of those areas I have looked into is the tariff I'm on at home.
At the end of last year I switched electricity supplier to Octopus as they had a better 12M deal than Ovo - who have been slowly annoying me for a few years - and then looked at their EV centric options.
I was very close to clicking the "yes please, I'll go for Octopus Go" button but opened a spreadsheet instead.
Checking back over my usage for the last 12 months and putting in the current (no electrical pun intended) standing charge, on and off peak rates then the proposed ones it turned out that over a year I'd be worse off on the 'lower' rate. Only because this is just for off peak. Now I know that I'll be charging the car overnight, but it doesn't compensate for the higher rates and S/C during the day.
The standing charge is 10% higher and the peak rate is 11% higher. So over the course of a year I would end up paying more due to these than I do now.

For now, I'm sticking with the current tariff until I can see the S/C and Peak rate change to something that makes more sense or I buy another 16 solar panels...and move somewhere sunny...

 

[Rolfe]

If you don't have a home battery to allow you to move all your consumption to the cheap rate you really do have to do your sums carefully.

 

[JohnV6]

Agreed I fill my 8.4 kWh of batteries at off peak & thus avoid buying peak rate plus I get more export and the arbitrage between cheap rate & export pays well

 

[Bam Bam]

I'll start with this - my name is Andrew, and I'm a nerd.

I have done a lot of looking around since deciding to make the switch to an EV and one of those areas I have looked into is the tariff I'm on at home.
At the end of last year I switched electricity supplier to Octopus as they had a better 12M deal than Ovo - who have been slowly annoying me for a few years - and then looked at their EV centric options.
I was very close to clicking the "yes please, I'll go for Octopus Go" button but opened a spreadsheet instead.
Checking back over my usage for the last 12 months and putting in the current (no electrical pun intended) standing charge, on and off peak rates then the proposed ones it turned out that over a year I'd be worse off on the 'lower' rate. Only because this is just for off peak. Now I know that I'll be charging the car overnight, but it doesn't compensate for the higher rates and S/C during the day.
The standing charge is 10% higher and the peak rate is 11% higher. So over the course of a year I would end up paying more due to these than I do now.

For now, I'm sticking with the current tariff until I can see the S/C and Peak rate change to something that makes more sense or I buy another 16 solar panels...and move somewhere sunny...

Good to do your sums.

I'm a little surprised about this if you've got 16 solar panels, since that should cover a fair amount of your daily use, but perhaps you a) don't drive many miles and b) have high electricity usage in the evening.

It does sound like a battery would suit you well, but installers charge a lot for the labour.

 

[Everest]

It does sound like a battery would suit you well, but installers charge a lot for the labour.

... I'm reading between the lines, but as the OP already has 16 panels, I'm guessing that...

a) they have a relatively high energy usage in peak energy times (likely as has family at home from profile) and
b) don't already have home battery storage

If so, then I'm guessing it is likely they are on the old FIT scheme, so adding a battery to an existing non-hybrid inverter is relatively expensive and could compromise their existing feed-in payments. Otherwise adding a battery would surely be a no-brainer, cost-wise, assuming they not planning on moving anytime soon

Where the OP said...

For now, I'm sticking with the current tariff until I can see the S/C and Peak rate change to something that makes more sense

.. I trust they have seen the new 'low' rate of around 5p/kWh that OE's Go tariff is likely to be from April?

 

[Technonotice]

We had our panels installed about 8 years ago, and as a farm we have an unusual power usage - lots of freezers and heat lamps over winter (for meat and for babies in that order). So, no batteries installed at the time and it would be cost prohibitive to do it now.
On the tariff, my calcs have been based on the upcoming rate from 01.04.26 - it works out at a 2% saving over a year.

 

[GaryMG4]

I have a 4Kw array (on FiT) and no battery, on Intelligent Octopus Go (48p standing, 29.2p peak and 7p off peak) my average unit cost over the last 12 months was around 15p so much less than the 25p(?) capped rate.

 

[Everest]

Should have gone to spec-savers, my "reading-between-the-lines" was way out !!!

 

[Everest]

So, no batteries installed at the time and it would be cost prohibitive to do it now.

I guess you have done the calculations - but I would have thought that - if your usage is that high for freezers and heat lamps etc. - then buying kWh at 5p, rather that 25p would result in massive savings, especially over the winter. What is your typical daily energy usage over 24h in winter?

 

[Technonotice]

October 31 1041.225 426.229
November 31 964.58 371.707
December 31 1026.863 291.975
January 31 1538.051 560.645
February 28 1544.733 576.352
March 31 883.528 403.806


First set of numbers - days per month (for SC calc) second is peak kw/h, third is off peak kw/h

 

[Everest]

So for Jan and Feb, about 50kWh / day peak kWh. Is that your usage (i.e. including solar production) or energy import? P.S. have PM'd you.