Intelligent Octopus Go: Virtual Power Plant Aggregates One Gigawatt Capacity

The e-mobility electricity provider Octopus Energy has now amassed a total inventory of one gigawatt of EV batteries. 150,000 car batteries are combined into a virtual power plant using the Octopus technology platform Kraken. This enables charging processes to be automatically shifted to more environmentally friendly and cost-effective times, benefiting both the grid and the EV owners, as the provider advertises. The capacity of one gigawatt corresponds to the amount of electricity needed to power the cities of Birmingham and Leeds on a typical evening.

The tariff Intelligent Octopus Go, introduced at the beginning of 2022, is the first 100 percent flexible charging tariff in the UK, allowing drivers six hours of cheap charging every night. In Germany, Intelligent Octopus was introduced at the end of 2023. The number of customers of this tariff has quintupled in England alone in the last year. The company sees itself as one of the cheapest electric car tariffs in the UK, with customers saving £600 per year compared to a variable standard tariff. Compared to a combustion engine car, the savings are even £1,660 per year.

The app allows users to set when the vehicle should be ready and the desired charge level. Kraken checks in the background when the charging should take place to be most beneficial for the energy system – at times when there is cheap and low-carbon energy and the grid is less stressed.