Advertising feature from Smart Meters

With the latest energy price cap due to come in at the beginning of next month, research has revealed that 40 per cent of Britons are still confused by what the cap actually is. In addition, nearly half (44 per cent) of those surveyed are unsure of the difference between fixed rate and variable energy tariffs. Despite this uncertainty, people are still keen to engage with their energy use, with research showing that discussions about energy efficiency, bills and usage take place in households seven times a month on average. Londoners chat about the topic most often, at around ten times a month, while those in Southampton only bring the subject up five times. Those aged 18 to 24 admit that they have energy chats 14 times a month, with those aged 55+ just four times.

Over the past winter, for the first time in decades, concerns about where our energy comes from, and whether we have enough for our needs, have become a public talking point. In Britain we import around 50 per cent of the gas we need – making energy security a particularly pressing issue. What would it take to make Britain energy secure? An energy-secure Britain would have a continuous, affordable supply of energy that could respond to changes in supply and demand. We currently rely on gas to heat the majority of our homes, and to generate a third of our electricity. Reducing the amount of gas we need to import – and making more homegrown energy instead – could improve the longer-term energy security of our country.

Turning on the kettle for the first cup of tea in the morning, most of us would once barely have considered the energy it would take to heat the water, let alone where that energy came from. But in the past year, rising costs have forced us to learn more about our energy system – and how it’s serving our modern nation. Last month, the Prime Minister created a new department for Energy Security and Net Zero. It will be tasked with securing our energy supply, improving energy markets and seizing the opportunities of net zero. When it comes to energy security, Britain faces two particular challenges: Our dependence on imported fossil fuels – notably gas, which warms most of our homes.

COP26 has seen leaders from around the world pledge stronger action on climate change. But while the vast majority of us recognise that a warming planet is a threat to the world, do we know what it means for our lives closer to home? In June, the UK’s independent advisory body on climate change — the Climate Change Committee — published its latest assessment of climate risks to the UK. The report sets out what could happen to the country — and what our lives could look like — if we don’t take immediate action to reduce our emissions. Given rising temperatures are already happening, it’s likely that, by the mid-century, we will be seeing more dramatic weather.

The next two decades will bring many challenges — not least climate change, geopolitical tensions and addressing inequality. Yet, at the same time, a range of revolutionary technologies are set to change much of our lives for the better. Campaign group Smart Energy GB commissioned Foresight Factory, a team of consumer trend experts focusing on the future, to look at how everyday UK residents might go about their lives in 2035. In particular, we wanted to map the sustainability, technology and energy trends that could shape their lives — and the role of smart meters in unlocking these. The report predicts that, in 15 years, many of us will live in fully-automated smart homes, where innovations typically seen in sci-fi films — like domestic robots — are commonplace.

Addressing the threat of climate change will likely be the biggest challenge of our generation. However, research has shown that, despite the increased media focus on net zero, nearly half (44%) of us still feel unsure about what we should be doing. Smart Energy GB has warned that, unless governments and others address this gap in knowledge, our collective net zero efforts may be at risk. The organisation has significant experience of engaging consumers on carbon-saving technologies, through leading a major campaign around the role of smart meters in helping to deliver a cleaner energy system.

The move to electric vehicles (EVs) is already helping the UK reduce its usage of fossil fuels, while also driving down the cost of mobility and improving air quality. But even as growing numbers of people switch to EVs, their benefits cannot be taken for granted. Research estimates that the mass take-up of EVs could see demand for electricity rise around 15 per cent over the next 30 years. If EVs are to realise their full green potential, we need as much of that electricity to come from renewables as possible. Great Britain has already made great strides in the usage of renewable methods to generate electricity, reducing the emissions intensity of its energy supply by 50 per cent in four years. But can this momentum be sustained if demand rises significantly?

In the past few years, millions of us have switched over to smart meters to better understand the energy we’re using — reducing both our carbon footprint and our energy bills. And as more of us make the switch, these savings have the potential to grow even further. Smart meters are also part of a much bigger transformation of the country’s energy infrastructure — helping build a flexible, decentralised and decarbonised energy system that will contribute to making Britain smarter, greener and ready for our future energy demands. It’s called the smart energy system — and it’s a completely new way of managing our energy. Why upgrade? The first electricity grids were built as one-way streets, enabling power to flow from suppliers to the consumer.