Pinergy’s lifestyle tariffs to target remote workers
ENERGY supplier Pinergy aims to capitalise on the switch-on of 240,000 smart meters by introducing new tariffs for remote workers and electric vehicle owners as household energy consumption rises sharply due to lockdowns.
The new smart meters installed by ESB Networks are due to be switched on at the end of this month, the first tranche in a nationwide upgrade programme that will see 2.25 million of the high tech meters installed in Irish households by 2024.
They will allow electricity suppliers to offer a host of new services to households, and Pinergy claims to be the first out of the blocks with the launch of its new range of ‘Pinergy Lifestyle’ plans.
Pinergy said it applied energy usage insights to develop the plans based on how families have adapted their lifestyles in the last year. During 2020 it saw energy consumption in family homes rise between 4pc and 14pc year on year and it said rolling lockdowns would see this trend continue.
Customers with smart meters would be able to choose between a Work from Home plan, a Family Time plan and a Drive Time plan, aimed at families looking to charge their electric vehicles (EVs) overnight.
Pinergy, which is also preparing to offer a billpay option for the first time to add to the prepay plans it has specialised in, said that it was planning to roll-out even more plans over 2021 to meet the ever-changing needs of Irish families.
The Work from Home plan would operate a 30pc discount Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, while a Family Time plan would operate daily between 6pm to 10pm, providing customers with a 40pc discount off standard tariffs. The Drive Time EV charging plan would operate from 2am to 5am with a 5 cents per unit rate.
“We have timed the launch of our new lifestyle plan and app to be first to market and ready to coincide and support the roll-out of the national smart metering programme,” Enda Gunnell, chief executive at Pinergy, said.
“We have significant experience in smart metering over the last number of years, and we want to bring these insights and experiences to the under-served residential bill pay market.”