MILLIONS of households across the country are being offered extra money to use less energy at peak times during the winter.
The scheme is being rolled out by the National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) after a successful trial was carried out with Octopus Energy customers.
Families will be paid for changing the time they use energy-hungry appliances such as ovens and washing machines, according to reports.
Usually, an average household will pay 28.34p for each kilowatt-hour of electricity they use. But now, they could be paid as much as £6 for each kilowatt-hour they avoid using such appliances at peak times.
The National Grid ESO hopes the scheme will provide a cheaper alternative to paying fossil fuel power plants to generate more electricity and could also reduce the risk of blackouts.
In order to take part in the scheme, households will need smart meters to be paid to cut their usage.
The scheme was already trialled with 100,000 Octopus customers earlier this year where they were told to reduce their energy usage between 4.30pm and 6.30pm. Octopus said that the average household saved 23p per two-hour period, though some saved as much as £4.35.
The Ofgem energy price cap, which sets a limit on the rates a supplier can charge for gas and electricity use, rose by 54 per cent on April 1 this year. Now, it is expected to rise once again in October after the Ofgem boss predicted it could go up by hundreds of more pounds.
