Smart Export Guarantee

If you are a resident living in England, Scotland or Wales, then you could be eligible for the Smart Export Guarantee tariff. The Smart Export Guarantee remunerates customers for the renewable electricity they generate, the scheme was brought in to replace the Feed-in Tariff, which paid solar panel owners for the energy they created. After the closure of the Feed-in Tariff scheme in 2019, it was still recognised that there was a need to reward owners of small-scale renewable energy solutions for the energy they send back to the grid and the creation of the Smart Export Guarantee began. 

The scheme has been running since January 2020. Unfortunately, this isn’t available to residents in Northern Ireland.  

How much will I receive for exporting electricity? 

With the Smart Export Guarantee there is no minimum tariff – but is required to be always greater than zero. This means the decision is solely up to the energy suppliers on what tariffs to offer their consumers. (Multiple tariffs can be offered) 

Tariff Types 

You can either have a fixed or variable tariff. A fixed tariff means you will receive a pre-set rate (per kWh) of energy exported over the desired length of the contract. Whereas with a variable tariff the price is altered based on market demand – Again never legally allowed to fall below zero. 

SEG and energy storage 

If you have an energy storage system such as Battery Storage linked to your Solar Panels, you are eligible for SEG. Depending on your SEG contract, your storage system can store excess energy from the grid (known as brown electricity) before being exported instantly to the grid. 

*Please note energy suppliers are not required to pay for your ‘brown’ electricity that is exported to the grid, but they may decide to do so. 

How does the scheme work with solar battery storage? 

The SEG is an export tariff, so please be mindful that you only receive payment for what you sell to the grid. If you store your excess energy, you will not get receive any tariffs/ be paid for this unless exported to your energy supplier. 

However, in some cases solar storage is covered by the SEG, meaning if you export stored energy, you could still qualify for the export tariff – this decision is at the supplier’s discretion.  

All licensed energy suppliers with 150,000 or more customers must provide a SEG tariff. Smaller companies may offer a tariff on a voluntary basis. If you already have a Feed-in Tariff on your installation – don’t worry this will remain unaffected by the SEG.