Octopus Energy has confirmed that households have earned nearly £100 million from selling their spare solar power through the energy giant over the past year. More than 400,000 households are now on Octopus’s export tariffs, and the company has paid out an average of £244 per home.
The tariffs have seen 825 GWh of power fed back to the grid over the last 12 months. Octopus, which serves Birmingham households, has seen a surge in interest in solar installations during the recent heatwave months.
Surge in Solar Interest During Heatwave
Almost 74,000 people enquired about installing solar with Octopus during the months of May, June, and July – up 34% on the same period last year. This increase comes as the UK experienced record-breaking temperatures and a heightened focus on energy independence.
Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, Chief Product and Marketing Officer at Octopus, said: “Over 400,000 UK households on Octopus tariffs are already generating their own clean energy, and that number just keeps climbing. The more we make use of our homegrown green energy sources, the less we rely on fossil fuels, and the more secure our energy system becomes.”
Climate Groups Urge Government Action
In related news, climate campaigners have written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham, urging him to take stronger action on the climate crisis. Hannah Martin, a co-director of Green New Deal Rising who coordinated the letter, said: “It’s barely believable as wildfires sweep the nation and drought sweeps across the country. If you can’t name the problem, how will the British public trust you to come up with the solution?”
The climate organisations added: “We applaud these statements, and we urge you to command the same clarity of position demonstrated in your mayoral leadership, in your position now as prime minister. That means publicly recognising the scale of the crisis, naming its cause, and using your position to tackle this grave threat to our lives and livelihoods now and the lives of our children and grandchildren in the future.”
Call to Stop New Oil and Gas Drilling
Robert Palmer, the deputy director of the campaign group Uplift, stressed that Burnham needed to face the crisis and act. “He must take urgent steps to deal with the problem, including stopping major new oil and gas drilling such as the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields,” he said. “Scientists could not be clearer that more drilling will wreck our planet and perpetuate this extreme weather.”
Palmer concluded: “The prime minister needs to look out of the window and protect the country.” The letters and statements come as the UK continues to grapple with the effects of climate change, including extreme heat and drought conditions.
