Octopus Energy grows UK’s largest virtual power plant

Octopus Energy now manages more than 100 megawatts (MWs) of electric car charging power via its smart tariff ‘Intelligent Octopus’.

The combined capacity of the car batteries on Intelligent Octopus holds enough energy to power a city the size of Leicester for an hour.  

Intelligent Octopus a flexible car charging tariff, which offers clean electricity for 10p per kilowatt hour (kWh) when it is best for the grid.

This allows an average driver to charge their electric vehicle (EV) for less than a third of what it would cost to charge up on a standard variable tariff, reducing fuel costs to about 3p per mile, claims Octopus. 

Customers use the Octopus Energy app to set the time (and amount) they want their vehicle charged by. The company’s energy technology platform - Kraken - then works in the background to automatically charge the cars up when there is abundant, low-cost energy and when the grid is less busy, helping to balance out demand and supply on the grid.

By doing so, Intelligent Octopus is able to contribute to a flexible grid that doesn’t require expensive balancing costs.

Alex Schoch, head of flexibility at Octopus Energy, explained: “The tariff acts as a virtual power plant, shifting demand out of peak times and therefore cutting bills for everyone.

“As more electric cars take the road and steal market share from old-school gas-guzzlers, we need even more solutions like Intelligent Octopus to handle the extra devices, increase the grid’s resilience and promote a green energy future.” 

Octopus, which is the UK’s third largest energy supplier, launched Intelligent Octopus in 2022 as a specialist tariff for managing smart tech solutions.