For the first time in years I took a detailed look at my own electricity bill
I would recommend this exercise for those who prophesise in conferences about proactive consumers adjusting consumption in real time depending on wind and sunshine. I do think I’m more proactive on energy than the middle class average, but I currently have
- A 1974 electromechanical meter which would survive a nuclear war and has meter reading once in 6 months. On the plus side, good luck trying to hack it.
- A 9.5 cents/kwh flat, no questions asked electricity charge fixed for 3 years
I estimated that with a smart meter and a digital house with the usual price volatility we would save around 20 cents a day, or 80 euros a year, this would have to pay for not only the meter and digital equipment but also rewiring the house. In our region when the electrician finally picks up the phone, the bill is already above 80 euros.
I pay a monthly fee which is a small fraction of the depreciation and capital cost of the network infrastructure leading to our house but around 300 euros in various taxes and surcharges, all per kwh energy flowing down from the system. If I put a solar panel on the rooftop (I don’t, the bureaucracy associated with that in our suburb is mind boggling) the most attractive part of the business model would be to avoid paying for the basic infrastructure not to mention defence, education and all the other public goods taxes are paying for. There is still a long way till the efficient market design for proactive consumers.
Even in Germany the 7 cent/kwh surcharge is the same day and night which dampens the demand response incentive - in an ideal system it would vary according to system conditions with an optimisation algorithm delivering the target annual revenue.
Chief Climate and Geo Scientist bei Munich Re (Group)
7 年You are right, @9.5 ct/kWh smart metering does not make much sense. In other jurisdictions like Germany the situation, however, is different: homeowners have to pay in 2017 rather 27-30 ct/kWh (including approx. 7ct/kWh surcharge for the feed-in of renewables). At this price level demand side management could become a business case...
Bpifrance
7 年If you work at the IEA, then you are in France, which has quite low electricity tariffs compared to other EU countries. Hence then non incentive in making a revolution out of your home energy system. You want it or not, you will soon have a Linky smart meter. You might then be able to follow your real time consumption and ask for a different tariff structure. Rdv in a couple of years for a follow up article...
There's an app for this, of course. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.wattler.app An easy way to hack your meter - without all the rewiring & equipment. Takes a pic of the meter, identifies, tells you the consumption. Could also help to lift the consciousness of the said middle class average.