Energy suppliers British Gas, OVO, Bulb, E.ON, Scottish Power and SSE have been ordered to pay a combined £10.8 million after missing the smart meter installation target in 2022.
A new Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) report has dubbed smart meters a “critical tool in the transition to a low carbon energy system”.
Although progress has been made in the rollout of smart meters, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) “faces challenges in meeting its latest targets”, says the National Audit Office (NAO).
Energy data transfer regulator ElectraLink said the final figure for smart meter installations in 2022 reached 2.37 million – slightly lower than the 2.42 million reported in 2021.
Cornwall Insight has argued in its latest research paper that smart meters are set to play a vitally important role in securing energy security in the UK.
The number of messages sent from smart meters surged to more than 12.1 billion in 2022, nearly doubling the 6.3 billion messages the previous year, according to the Data Communications Company (DCC).
E.ON has celebrated reaching five million smart meter installations across the UK, in what the company has called an significant milestone which “is key to E.ON’s ambition to help customers better manage their energy”.
