EV charging app introduces ‘Plunge Pricing’ events to save drivers money.

Opportunities to save money seem to be a rarity nowadays but drivers of electric cars are getting a new opportunity to reduce their charging costs. Through a new feature on the app from Octopus Energy, drivers can now benefit from cheaper charging when there is a surplus of clean energy available on the grid.

Octopus Energy specialises in using renewable energy sources and has announced plans to run multiple 'Plunge Pricing' events throughout the rest of 2024. These events could help some EV drivers save as much as £250 over the remaining months of the year.

The app, available for download from both the Apple and Android app stores, is called Octopus Energy's Electroverse. The first event allowing customers to save money has now been launched, promising an average saving of £6.50 each time they charge their cars.

Drivers can benefit from discounts ranging from 15% to 45% per kilowatt-hour on charging rates. These discounts are available when there is a surplus of clean and renewable energy on the national grid, typically during windy or sunny weather when solar and wind power generation is at its peak. Octopus Energy has even suggested that drivers might be paid to charge their cars if prices go into the negative.

Matt Davies, the Director and Founder of Octopus Electroverse, has stated that the event “isn’t your average discount – it’s revolutionising public charging and something that could never be done with petrol. We’re geared up to work with more charge point brands so we can bring this to even more people.”

A similar scheme was introduced by Octopus for home tariffs in 2018. The app will provide its customers with access to “more than 700,000” chargers across the United Kingdom and Europe. This includes many of the largest charging networks such as Shell Recharge, Instavolt, Ionity, and Osprey.