Renewables: 50.8%.
Smart meters: 72%. Both matter.
Two official releases landed on 27 August. Renewables supplied 50.8% of major generation in April to June. And Britain now has 42 million smart meters, 72% of the total. Put the two together and you get the whole story of your bill.
🌬️ The generation half
Renewables 50.8%, up 7.6% on the year. Low carbon generation, including nuclear, 67.2%. Gas up 6.7% because nuclear was down 12% for maintenance.
Half clean on average means very clean at 1pm on a windy day and very dirty at 6pm on a still one. The average hides the hours that cost money.
📟 The meter half
42 million smart and advanced meters. 72% of all meters. 92% of them actually working in smart mode, which leaves about 3.2 million that are smart in name only.
Replacements now outnumber new installs. 570,000 replaced in the quarter against 525,000 new. The first generation is wearing out.
🔗 Why they belong together
A smart meter is what lets your supplier and the grid see when you use power, not just how much. That is the thing that makes paying you to shift possible.
11 million smart meters are already on half hourly settlement. That means your usage at 6pm is priced as 6pm usage. For most people that is invisible. It does not have to be.
If renewables are half the mix and the meter can see the clock, the last piece is a reason to move. Money is the usual one.
Britain built the clean generation and fitted the meters. The bit that is missing is the connection between the two and the person paying the bill. That connection is a tariff, a battery, or a service that pays you to shift. Pick one.