Grab some green electrons on the UK’s most popular EV tariff, Intelligent Octopus Go.

Review written by: Sarah Chambers – Octopus Intelligent Go Review – May 2024 – 150,000 customers and me.

I first signed up for Intelligent Octopus Go in March 2022, three months before it was officially launched. I was excited that I could plug in and forget about my EV knowing that Octopus would turn my charging off and on during the night.

By allowing Octopus to control my EV they promised to meet my daily charging goals using energy at the greenest times for the grid.

The EV community didn’t automatically jump on the idea. They seemed reluctant to step away from standard off-peak hours that worked on a simple predictable timer. However, Octopus can be very persuasive.

Let’s fast-forward two years and I will tell you how I got on.

Intelligent Octopus Go is now the world’s biggest virtual power plant.

Going from a start-up beta tariff idea to the world’s biggest virtual power plant is quite a big step with Intelligent Octopus Go. It has taken just 24 months to launch the tariff, get 150,000 EV drivers onboard and have enough collective energy to power Birmingham and Leeds but how does this all work?

Intelligent Octopus.

Intelligent Octopus is a step beyond anything I thought possible when I switched from British Gas in 2018. It is a concept where any Octopus tariff could in theory be “Intelligent”. Octopus has created the Kraken software which can work with the National Grid. It could potentially make everything in your home interconnect running on the greenest energy when it’s abundant and helping reduce demand when it’s not needed.

So far Octopus has launched;

Intelligent Octopus Go for Electric Vehicle Charging.
Intelligent Octopus Cosy for heat pumps.
Intelligent Octopus Flux for solar panels and battery storage.

About the author: I’ve Been a Happy Octopus Energy Customer for 6 Years and I am an Octopus super fan. (I love the planet too.)

I’m Sarah, and as a mum of 3 daughters, I want to save money and do right by the planet. This led me down a rabbit hole of researching tariffs, smart meters, and renewable options.

You can find me on X and TikTok where I connect with around 7,000 followers looking for practical ways to electrify their homes and reduce energy bills.

Feel free to follow me Sarah_Go_Green and join the conversation – I’d love to hear from you!

I’m also featured on the Octopus website and their YouTube channel as a solar customer. I’ve been on the BBC News, Radio Wales, published in the Telegraph for owning part of a wind turbine and had a feature in Bloomberg.

I genuinely want to help you understand your options and make smarter energy choices. It’s that simple, I have become very geeky about my home energy and I can help you too.

I met with Alex Schoch, Head of Flexibility at Octopus Energy to discuss the Intelligent Tariffs.

I have no engineering or energy background and yet my interest in how we can change our relationship with energy use at home has spiralled. We are at a pivotal moment where we have to make the right choices and Octopus seems to be making that easy for us as we go on a journey to electrification.

I talk so much about this stuff on X, Alex who’s the head of the Intelligent Octopus tariffs asked me if I would like to pop into their offices in London for a chat. As I was in London with the kids I jumped at an hour child-free to talk about energy. (I never thought those words would come out of my mouth!)

@sarah_go_green #octopusenergy #octopusintelligenttariff #smarttariffs #zerobills #evtariffs ♬ Bring Me Sunshine (Theme from the TV Series ”Morecambe & Wise”) – Morecambe & Wise

Alex explained that there could be an Octopus Intelligent Everything. Octopus customers could reduce their bills by using energy when it’s the greenest and cheapest even without thinking. The Kraken software would handle everything.

The intelligent concept already exists in their zero bills homes . This is a pilot project where, with the right green tech, you pay no energy bills for 5 years.

Octopus Energy has recently launched

Alex at Octopus genuinely wants to help customers become part of a new green energy world driven by technology and I find that reassuring.

Intelligent Octopus is the UK’s largest and the world’s only virtual power plant made up of domestic devices capable of balancing grids in multiple countries. And it’ll keep growing to many more in the coming months – Alex Schoch.

How does Intelligent Octopus Go work?

Intelligent Octopus Go is a smart energy ecosystem where Octopus currently controls 150,000 EVs deciding when to turn them off and on.

As a customer you;

Plugin
Set a charging goal on the Octopus app.
Relax and pay 7.5p per kWh. (Around 2p a mile)

Octopus Energy takes care of the rest. It’s simple. If I can do it anyone can!

I have been on Intelligent Octopus Go for over 2 years. I can only count three of four times having encountered any issues on this tariff. Those issues have usually been software glitches Octopus have been quickly resolved. (I might have selective memory as I have saved so much money on this tariff, but I don’t think so.)

You’ll have to set up a test charge before you switch to this tariff. It is straightforward and the Octopus app guides you through it.

Intelligent Octopus tariff in action balancing the grid in the UK.

How much have I saved on Intelligent Octopus Go?

I have saved so much money charging at home on Intelligent Octopus Go. I have driven around 8,800 miles in my Tesla Model Y this year and this has cost me £132 in EV charging costs. Compared to fueling a petrol or diesel car that is a whopping saving of around £1,282 .

I did some of my charging using free Tesla supercharging miles but around 70% of EV charging was at home. That’s because of the Intelligent Octopus Go off-peak rate of 7p per kWh and an offer with Tesla for free supercharging miles when a friend buys one of their vehicles.

I have also saved money on my home energy bill as I load shift a lot of my white goods, such as my dishwasher to the nighttime rate. You can use the 7.5p per kWh rate to run your home too and that’s saved me oodles too.

Even before I had my battery storage I would use at least 50% of my home energy off-peak. Now with the addition of a home battery installed by Octopus Energy, my average price per kWh for the whole house is around 8p – 9p per kWh.

I have invested in an EV and thanks to Octopus home charging it’s been well worth it, both for my pocket and the planet.

Summary

When you drive an Electric Vehicle I am guessing a part of it is because you want to make a difference to the environment. It doesn’t have to be the reason but for many it is.

You’ll get the odd raised eyebrow from some. How will the National Grid cope with all these new Electric Vehicles? My simple answer is with the help of smart innovative tariffs like Octopus Intelligent.

I get giddy reading about fascinating topics as Octopus customers we are exposed to and have access to. I know it’s not a topic everyone would get excited about but if you care about our planet’s future and saving money you’ll love Intelligent Octopus Go.

Octopus Energy customer review.

My website is not managed or owned by Octopus Energy. It is just a website created by me, Sarah Go Green, a mum, home energy geek and a very happy Octopus Energy customer.

You can read further independent Octopus Energy reviews on Trustpilot where 89% of customers give them 5 stars.

Other posts by Sarah you may wish to read:

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