UK Grid Operator Paid £9 Million to Shift Winter Power Demand

  • Demand Flexibility Service has paid back over £9 million
  • Around 2.2 million businesses and households have signed up

A smart meter.

Photographer: Daniel Leal/AFP/Getty Images
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Britain’s grid operator has paid households and businesses over £9 million ($11.4 million) so far this winter to curb their power use under a program to save energy with customers asked to shift demand at much shorter notice.

The program has seen 2.2 million businesses and households sign up to the so-called Demand Flexibility Service, which encourages eligible properties with smart meters to shift power usage outside of peak hours, the National Grid’s Electricity System Operator said in a statement Thursday.