In the fight to try and beat climate change and promote the purchase of renewable energy products, the UK has implemented the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) tariff, this tariff is designed to pay back to the customers that have invested in solar PV or even in wind turbines by utilising the excess electricity that the house hold and/or battery do not use and sending it back to the national grid. You can send this back to a provider of your own choice and will be paid a rate above 0. This rate will depend on the current market and also the provider that the customer chooses. The SEG Tariff was created to replace the previous Feed-In Tariff (FIT) Scheme and since has become an important and integral way to persuade people to make the renewable jump to get the investment of renewable energy products and lower the Carbon Emissions footprint by 2050. This blog explains how the SEG Tariff works and integral information about the Smart Export Guarantee.
Why The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) Payment Was Setup
The Smart Export Guarantee Tariff encourages people to purchase renewable energy products by reassuring the businesses and households that the excess generation they do not need or use will give them a financial return weekly/monthly/quarterly, as well as the solar system itself generating a saving after its payback period has been reached. When you compare the SEG Tariff to its previous The FIT Tariff, the Seg Tariff is designed to be more market driven which means that it should be providing consumers with better rates for the electricity they are producing and sending back to the grid.
SEG and Smart Meters
The SEG Tariff also promotes the use of Smart meters as you need to have one of these already installed or planned to be installed before you can set up an export tariff with a electric provider of your choice. A smart meter is simply a device that precisely measures that actual amount of electricity that is being exported, enabling accurate payments to the generators. This makes it very easy to see what you are expecting to be paid back for the export and also is potentially transforming every household into a mini power station. However, critics do say that there is a layer of uncertainty regarding the financial payback of green energy investments because the market doesn’t have a guaranteed export rate and this can drop and change along with the market.
Conculsion of SEG Payments
All in all, the Smart Export Guarantee Tariff forms a crucial part in the UK’s green transition and plan to reduce the carbon footprint. It is a market orientated scheme that is designed to promote sustainability within the energy sector by promoting the purchase of more renewable energy products and technologies by compensating energy producers for their extra exported electricity to the national grid, the SEG Tariff ensures they are paid fairly for their part. The ongoing evolution of the SEG Tariff will play a crucial role in the UK’s journey towards cleaner energy and more environmental sustainability.