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If OVO provide 100% renewable electricity, why are wholesale prices so high?

  • September 8, 2022
  • 5 replies
  • 2233 views

Hold on. So if Ovo provide “100% renewable electricity as standard for everyone”…

…then why has it suddenly gotten so expensive?

🤷‍♂️

Best answer by M.isterW

Updated on 08/01/25 by Abby_OVO

The problem is the way the electricity wholesale price is set, which is outside OVO's control.

 

The price is set each half hour to the price of the last unit required to meet demand. At the moment that last unit is almost always generated by gas, so is expensive. That means every unit of electricity costs the same as a unit of electricity generated by gas and we don't see the saving we should be seeing from the low cost of renewables.

 

The govt could tax the generation companies who are making huge profits from this but they have chosen not to. They could also reform the wholesale electricity market, which they are looking at.

 

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5 replies

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  • Carbon Catcher**
  • 119 replies
  • September 8, 2022

You can ask the same of eon and EDF (nuclear). Generators feed into the grid, it all gets mixed, supplier buy from the grid at inflated prices.

apparently it’s legal!


juliamc
Carbon Catcher***
Forum|alt.badge.img+3
  • Carbon Catcher***
  • 1258 replies
  • September 9, 2022

Write to your MP. The new PM has said she’d address this hasn’t she? Now’s the time to put on some pressure. 


juliamc
Carbon Catcher***
Forum|alt.badge.img+3
  • Carbon Catcher***
  • 1258 replies
  • September 9, 2022

Of course it’s complete nonsense that we’re only on 100% renewable 24/7 as everything would lose power when the wind stops blowing… 


M.isterW
Carbon Catcher***
Forum|alt.badge.img+4
  • Carbon Catcher***
  • 411 replies
  • Answer
  • September 9, 2022

Updated on 08/01/25 by Abby_OVO

The problem is the way the electricity wholesale price is set, which is outside OVO's control.

 

The price is set each half hour to the price of the last unit required to meet demand. At the moment that last unit is almost always generated by gas, so is expensive. That means every unit of electricity costs the same as a unit of electricity generated by gas and we don't see the saving we should be seeing from the low cost of renewables.

 

The govt could tax the generation companies who are making huge profits from this but they have chosen not to. They could also reform the wholesale electricity market, which they are looking at.

 


Blastoise186
Plan Zero Hero
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 7888 replies
  • September 9, 2022

Indeed. The only way to bring a more level playing field would be to split the market so that suppliers like OVO could break off and just buy energy on a market where fossil fuels are banned, leaving anyone who still wants to use them anyway to continue buying on another market where they’re allowed.


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