Join our latest trial and support a future powered by renewables

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Our innovative new Balancing Mechanism Trial helps us build the tools to support National Grid in building a greener future powered by renewable energy!

Recruitment for the trial is now finished! Updated:16 April 2021

Energy storage is one of the keys in opening the door to a net-zero future. At Moixa, we are keen to help advance this and so, we are building the technology to enable our Moixa Smart Batteries to be able to support the UK electricity system for various grid services. In the future, this will mean that the grid can be powered with more renewable energy and less fossil fuels by relying more heavily on battery assets to balance the grid when there is too little or too much renewable energy generation.

The Balancing Mechanism is one of the tools that National Grid uses to balance supply and demand on the GB grid. Due to recent changes (the introduction of Virtual Lead Parties (VLP)), residential assets such as Moixa Smart Batteries can support the grid through the Balancing Mechanism without the battery owner being tied to a particular electricity supplier. This brings much more freedom to participate in this service and for Moixa to be able to offer our community another route to support a greener grid of the future.
To deliver this service we will be partnering with Flexitricity, who was the first aggregator to trade in the Balancing Mechanism as a VLP, opening the door for Moixa to support the grid by utilising home solar batteries. As this is a grid service that we will newly support, using both our current and rapidly developing technology, before we cover this through GridShare Membership (our current programme for battery owners participating in grid services), we will first be trialling how we manage this service. This trial will use our 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery to test and continue to improve how our software and operational systems work to support the Balancing Mechanism.

We have limited spaces available for the trial and for those who choose to take part in this, we are offering a 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery for the Balancing Mechanism Trial price of £2,950 incl. VAT and standard installation. This £1,500 saving on the regular retail price is in return for participating in our Balancing Mechanism trial and giving feedback on your experience of being a battery owner participating in the service. At the end of the trial, we may, at this stage, offer you the opportunity to participate in the GridShare Membership Scheme offered to new participants at that time, which may enable you to continue to take part in the Balancing Mechanism and other grid services which we can make available to you.
This trial price is available until May 31st 2021 for a limited number of customers and the trial is due to run until the end of December 2021**.

If you are interested in taking part in this Balancing Mechanism Trial and getting a 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery installed for £2,950 please contact our friendly team of Solar Storage Specialists today to guarantee your place on the trial.

Balancing Mechanism Trial: Further Information

Why should I add energy storage to a solar PV system?

Home solar PV generates energy during the day, but if you don’t use it as it is generated, you miss out on potential savings as your solar energy is sent to the grid. The amount that most solar panel owners receive for the energy they export (to the grid), is a lot less than they pay for the imported energy they then need to buy back once daylight has ended.
However, when adding energy storage like a Moixa Smart Battery to your solar PV system, you can store that solar energy throughout the day, so you can access clean, self-generated energy at night. With smart energy storage, the value of that energy is maximised by taking into consideration your household habits, time-of-use tariff and during this trial will also be optimised to support the grid through the Balancing Mechanism.

What is the Balancing Mechanism?

The Balancing Mechanism is one of the ways that National Grid can balance supply and demand for the GB grid or electricity network. National Grid will look at predicted energy generation and predicted demand to see whether these match, and if there is a difference then National Grid will request support through the Balancing Mechanism. 

If there is too much demand on the grid and not enough energy being generated then the participating trial Moixa Smart Batteries would export their stored energy to the grid. If there is too much energy available, for example, a very windy and sunny day, then the Moixa Smart Batteries could be called upon to import energy from the grid.

What else should I expect as part of the trial?

For much of the time, your Moixa Smart Battery will work to ensure your home is powered by the cleanest solar energy or the lowest-cost grid energy available (for those on a time-of-use tariff). By agreeing to participate in the trial and purchasing at this lower price you also agree for us to call on your battery to support the grid through the Balancing Mechanism. This could mean that your battery would import some energy from the grid in anticipation for an event, or it could mean that the solar energy you generate is sent to the grid instead of being used in your home. These are details that we will review throughout the trial.
As this is the first time using our relationship with Flexitricity to deliver into the Balancing Mechanism there may be times when the trial impacts your expected energy savings. However, we anticipate that the £1,500 saving you will receive from the price reduction on the regular retail price for your Moixa Smart Battery are likely to significantly outweigh any negative impact the trial has on savings on your energy bill. This price reduction is given to you on the understanding that you will be fully involved in the different aspects of the trial and that you are happy for Moixa to test new technology and services on your battery and for you to give feedback.

Throughout this trial it is also likely that we will invite you to fill in surveys and give feedback so that we can then roll this technology out to other customers. At the end of the trial we may offer you the option to participate in GridShare Membership***, our programme that covers the flexibility services we currently offer to the grid. Unfortunately, you cannot participate in this trial and GridShare Membership at the same time and you may only be offered participation in GridShare Membership when the trial ends. 

How does the Balancing Mechanism help GB use more renewable energy and less fossil fuels?

The world is going through an energy transition. We are moving away from traditional fossil fuel energy which could be more easily ramped up and down to meet demand, and instead, we are moving towards more sources of renewable energy. As we increase the amount of renewable energy we generate we need to work out new ways to maintain power to the grid when the sun doesn’t shine and the wind is still. The Balancing Mechanism and other grid services help deliver new ways to keep homes powered across the UK so that we can rely more heavily upon renewable energy. 

At Moixa, our GridShare Software, on top of maximising your solar, optimising for time-of-use tariff and enabling you to access the Moixa Dashboard and App, can also make batteries work as a Virtual Power Plant. Each battery and energy storage device connected to GridShare can play its part in supporting the grid when there is too much or too little electricity available. We are currently supporting UK Power Networks to support the grid in the Lewes-Newhaven area, but this trial will be the first time we look to support National Grid across Great Britain.

What is included in the £2,950 trial offer?

The limited-time trial price of £2,950 is only available to a limited number of customers and includes a 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery incl. VAT and standard installation. By accepting this lower-priced offer you are agreeing to allow Moixa to undertake work related to the Balancing Mechanism Trial and understand that this, upon occasion may impact your Moixa Smart Battery savings and behaviour. You also agree to fill in surveys and give us feedback on your experience. 

If you would like to purchase a 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery for the full price of £4,450 and not participate in the trial, you are still welcome to do so. 

Can current Moixa customers take part in this trial?

This trial is only open to customers who purchase their battery as a part of this trial. However, once the trial is complete we hope to offer support to National Grid through the Balancing Mechanism via our GridShare Membership programme. The Balancing Mechanism Trial will not replace GridShare Membership. Rather, the learnings we take from the trial will enable us to improve GridShare Membership and how Moixa Smart Batteries are used to support Grid Services in GB. 

If you are looking for a quote for solar panels and a solar battery then our team will also be able to quote you for this at a lower price point based on your participation in this trial.

If you have any further questions about our Balancing Mechanism Trial or our 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Battery system, please feel free to contact our friendly team on 0161 883 2374 or by emailing enquiries@moixa.com.

Disclaimer

• The Balancing Mechanism Trial is only available to new sales made from January 2021 and only for 4.8kWh Moixa Smart Batteries.
• This trial will not be in replacement of GridShare Membership. This trial is to test how Moixa Smart Batteries can support National Grid through the Balancing Mechanism before potentially adding Balancing Mechanism as a service we support through GridShare Membership.
• If you wish to cancel the Trial or your User Agreement before the Trial is complete, you must give us 90 days’ notice. At the end of the notice period, you must pay us an amount as follows: If you give us notice within the first six months from the date of installation, £1000. If you give us notice after six months from the date of installation £500.
• This trial price is only available until May 31st and the installation must take place before June 30th to enable 6 months of participation in the trial.

**Moixa reserves the right to extend the trial if we are prevented from collecting enough data by extenuating circumstances for example, due to COVID restrictions. We may also end the trial earlier than December 31st if we are able to determine our results from the data we collect before that point.

***Please note that we reserve the right to alter our GridShare Membership Scheme during the course of the Trial, and you will be offered the option to participate (subject to meeting qualifying criteria) in whatever format the GridShare Membership Scheme is offered to new participants at the time you join it, once the Trial is complete.