Ovo Energy launches flat rate EV charging tariff in the UK
Energy provider Ovo just rolled out a new tariff providing a flat rate to drivers charging electric vehicles. The company says this would bring down charging costs to roughly £100 a year at a guaranteed flat rate of 5p per kWh for charging at all times of the day.
Called ‘Drive Anytime,’ the new Ovo tariff does away with advances to encourage off-peak charging like so many other tariffs do. Or rather, it leaves it to the AI and not the consumer to decide when it would be smart to do so – we get to that in a second. Ovo claims that the flat rate is similar to the ‘off peak’ rate offered by rival firms listed on the comparison website Zapmap. The new deal also represents a slightly better deal for drivers, Ovo says, than the trial version of the tariff, which offered a flat rate of 6p per kWh.
While simple, the flat rate remains “smart” using Ovo’s AI algorithms to charge vehicles when prices are low automatically and electricity is at its greenest. The company’s tech arm Kaluza developed the software. After customers select through an app when they need their car charged by, the software ensures vehicles charge when emissions and prices are lowest, Ovo explained.
Chris Russell, managing director of Ovo Drive, said the tariff had been designed to “encourage the use of electric vehicles as a carbon-conscious lifestyle choice, and it should be easy and accessible.”
The new tariff further enables customers to split their home electricity charges from their EV charging bill, and Ovo says it is the only tariff in the UK that enables this split. It also gives customers credits for the amount of electricity they save using smart charging, Ovo said, estimating it could slash charging costs for EV drivers by 70 per cent.
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