The downward trend in smart meter rollout has continued, with 9% fewer installations in June 2024 than the previous month and 15% fewer than in June 2023.
ElectraLink data shows there were 178,000 installations in June, lower than the same month of the last three years. So far this year, there have been 1.18 million installations.
Regionally, the areas that saw the most installations remained consistent for another month: East England had 22,000 installations, Southern England had 18,000 and the East Midlands had 17,000.
The most recent smart meter report from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) was released at the end of May, showing that by the end of Q1 2024 62% of all meters were smart or advanced meters. The UK government has a target of 80% coverage in homes and 73% coverage in small businesses by 2025, a benchmark that has already been lowered since being set.
As of the end of March, 35.5 million smart and advanced meters are currently operating in the UK.
ElectraLink reported that March saw an ‘unexpected’ downturn in the rollout, with the lowest monthly installations since March 2020. The year-on-year drop for March 2024 was 13% – slightly less significant than for June.
To some degree, the installation rate will slow down as increasing numbers of properties move to a smart meter. Measuring the number of operational meters might provide some more insight: the installation downturn in March followed a debate on smart meters losing smart capability, with about 4.31 million not operating in smart mode as of December 2023.
Current± recently reported on Electralink data showing that May this year saw 21% fewer changes of supplier (CoS) than the previous month, with the six-month moving average settled around 225,000.
Ofgem’s decision to remove the ban on acquisition tariffs (BAT) is set to be announced soon. Those arguing for a return to acquisition-only tariffs say that consumers will gain control over the costs associated with their energy use. Octopus Energy has vocally opposed removing BAT, pledging a ‘same price promise’ that will prevent ‘tease and squeeze’ deals that benefit only new customers.
