Electricity retailer Ovo Energy has launched a special discounted offer for electric vehicle drivers, providing cheap overnight power that it hopes will attract new customers seeking to save on recharging costs.
Ovo Energy will offer electric vehicle owners discounted power between the periods of midnight and 5 am, which it says could save drivers as much as $300 a year.
During that period, Ovo Energy will discount the cost of power by 5 cents per kilowatt-hour, providing an incentive for electric vehicle owners to charge their vehicles at home overnight when overall electricity demand – and the wholesale cost of electricity – is lower.
“This is the first step on our EV journey in Australia, as we offer the ever-increasing number of electric vehicle owners a more economical and 100% carbon-neutral energy offer,” Ovo Energy CEO Mark Yemm said.
“We’re excited to be at the forefront of this emerging market in Australia and expect to innovate further with the use of our Kaluza platform. We’re making it cheaper to charge an EV, by reflecting the lower cost of energy during these periods, and therefore making it more attractive to have an electric vehicle in Australia.”
Ovo Energy said that customers would need to have a smart meter installed, allowing electricity usage across different times of the day to be tracked. The electricity purchased will have 10 per cent GreenPower included by default, with customers able to opt in to increase this allocation to 100 per cent GreenPower.
Ovo Energy is a relative newcomer to the Australian market, which launched locally in 2019, looking to replicate its success in the United Kingdom, where it amasses more than five million customers as an independent retailer with a focus on sustainable energy and support for electric vehicle uptake.
It becomes the latest in a growing number of electricity retailers offering specialised products targeted at attracting electric vehicle owners.
Last year, the Snowy Hydro owned Red Energy offered an electricity plan that provided free electric vehicle charging to customers on weekends, and Powershop has likewise been offering discounted power to electric vehicle owners, depending on where they are located.
Origin Energy has previously secured a deal with Hyundai to offer discounts on rooftop solar and storage purchases to owners of Kona and Ioniq electric vehicles.
Origin Energy also teamed up with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to undertake a trial of ‘smart’ electric vehicle chargers that can be remotely monitored, to better understand the day-to-day needs of EV owners.
AGL Energy has likewise partnered with ARENA to trial the use of electric vehicles to act as energy storage for homes, allowing EVs to store and return power to the grid as needed, allowing EVs to play a role in supporting the stable and reliable operation of the grid.
Michael Mazengarb is a journalist with RenewEconomy, based in Sydney. Before joining RenewEconomy, Michael worked in the renewable energy sector for more than a decade.
