Grid Guru August 2026 Newsletter

Neil Avery
Aug 5
10 min read

Updates on the Solar and Heat Pump Industry in this months Grid Guru August 2026 Newsletter

Solar export rates are being cut, electricity VAT drops to 0% from 1 October, and the £9,000 BUS grant is live. Your August briefing

August 2026 · Monthly Briefing

From Neil Avery at Grid Guru — renewable energy compliance specialists for UK solar PV, heat pump and EV installers

Five things to know this month. Solar export rates are being cut — check what you're quoting for payback. Plug-in solar becomes legal to sell from 27 August. Domestic electricity goes to 0% VAT from 1 October — gas stays at 5%. The £9,000 BUS grant for oil and LPG homes is now live. And Ofgem publishes the October price cap by 26 August — we'll email you the number the day it's out. New this issue: DNO response times from our own applications.

THIS MONTH AT GRID GURU

On the desk this month: G99 applications for solar-plus-battery jobs where the battery takes the system over 16 A per phase, commercial EV pre-applications ahead of autumn installs, and heat pump packs for the first £9,000 BUS jobs. If you've got DNO applications, EV or heat pump notifications, MCS handover packs or design work coming up, send them over. Most G98 and EV notifications go same day; G99 in 3–5 working days.

REGULATION & POLICY

Solar Export Rates Are Being Cut — Check Your Payback Figures

Export rates have moved down this summer. British Gas closed Export & Earn Plus (15.1p) on 6 July — its replacement rates are 12p and 8p. EDF's Export Exclusive dropped from 24p to 18p. And Intelligent Octopus Flux, the best battery rate going, is still closed to new sign-ups. If your payback figures still use last year's export rates, they're overstating the return.

The other side: Octopus Flux still pays up to 29.32p/kWh at peak for battery homes and is open to anyone, whoever did the install — and 0% VAT on solar and battery installs runs to 31 March 2027. Full rate tables further down.

[ Update the export rate in your quote tool this week — quoting 24p when the live rate is 18p is a complaint waiting to happen. We do solar PV design and MCS handover packs — see the services. ]

No VAT on Electricity From 1 October — Gas Stays at 5%

From 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027 there is no VAT on domestic electricity bills. Gas stays at 5%. It's worth about £45 a year on an average bill, and it means electricity is now taxed less than gas — which helps every heat pump and EV running-cost figure you put in a quote from October.

Bills aren't coming down, though. Cornwall Insight's forecast from 21 July, which includes the VAT cut, still has the October cap at about £1,700 a year — around 2% up on now — because wholesale prices have risen. Ofgem publishes the actual figure by 26 August. Tell customers straight: electric running costs get cheaper compared with gas; the total bill stays about the same.

[ Update your gas-vs-heat-pump running-cost figures for any quote landing after 1 October. We do MCS-compliant heat pump design and handover packs — find out more. ]

£9,000 BUS Grant Is Live for Oil and LPG Homes

Since 21 July, off-gas-grid homes in England and Wales heated by oil or LPG get £9,000 towards an air-to-water or ground-source heat pump. Gas-grid homes stay at £7,500, air-to-air at £2,500. Only vouchers applied for on or after 21 July get the £9,000. Check the live figures on gov.uk before you put them in writing.

The scheme has £2.39bn behind it through to 2029/30, £400m of it this year, so the money won't run out overnight. DESNZ is posting leaflets to 200,000 eligible households — expect calls from oil and LPG postcodes through August. First official uptake figures are due late August.

[ If you quoted an oil or LPG job at £7,500 and it didn't go ahead, requote it at £9,000. We do the heat pump design and MCS 021 documentation — see the service. ]

MCS: Everyone Must Be on the New Scheme by 31 March 2027

The deadline for moving to the Redeveloped Installer Scheme is 31 March 2027 — your Certification Body will contact you when it's your turn. One useful change: DESNZ now recognises the new scheme as a Code of Practice for BUS, so once you've moved across you no longer need a separate Consumer Code membership for BUS work. That's one membership fee gone. And while Kiwa Energy UK winds down its MCS product certification, keep checking that the kit you regularly fit stays on the approved-product list.

GRID & DNO

Gate 2 Offers Are Going Out — and Autumn G99s Need to Go In Now

Gate 2 Phase 1 distribution offers are going out area by area until mid-November, with Phase 2 distribution offers from mid-October. If you get one: check the connection date, costs and any curtailment terms, and read the Queue Management Milestones — miss those and you lose your place. Response windows are short.

For jobs under 1 MW nothing changes — the normal route continues, and a full G99 can take up to 45 working days. Submit in early August and you'll have an answer in time for an October install. Submit in October and you're waiting until December. If you want autumn solar and storage jobs energised on time, the applications need to go in now.

[ Check the DNO capacity heat map before applying — amber and red areas may need reinforcement or export limitation. We prepare G99 applications, SLDs and G100 export-limitation schemes — see how. ]

New: DNO Response Times — What We're Actually Seeing

We put G98s, G99s and EV and heat pump notifications into every GB network, every week. From this issue we're publishing the typical full-G99 response times we're seeing from each network, updated monthly. The official window is 45 working days; what matters for quoting is how long each network is actually taking. Right now the spread is fairly tight — everything is coming back within roughly 23 to 31 days, averaging 27, well inside the official window.

Add your own: reply with your last G99 — which network, date submitted, date approved — and it goes into next month's table. Two lines in an email is enough.

[ Got a G99 stuck in a queue? Reply with the reference and we'll take a look. No charge. ]

Network (DNO) | Typical full G99 response — recent Grid Guru jobs

National Grid Electricity Distribution Midlands, SW England & S Wales: ~31 days

UK Power Networks London, SE & E England: ~23 days

SSEN S England & N Scotland: ~28 days

SP Energy Networks S Scotland, Merseyside & N Wales: ~25 days

Northern Powergrid NE England & Yorkshire: ~26 days

Electricity North West NW England: ~29 days

TECHNOLOGY IN THE INDUSTRY

Plug-In Solar Is Legal From 27 August

From 27 August, plug-in solar kits up to 800 W that meet the government's product specification can be sold and plugged into a normal 13 A socket. No installer, no planning, no DNO permission for compliant kit. Solar only — no batteries. Expect them in the big retailers at around £400. The ECA has already raised safety concerns.

What it means for you: plug-in kits sit outside MCS, so there's no SEG — anything exported is given away — and the claimed savings are £70–£110 a year. Customers will ask about them, and you'll start finding them on walls when you survey. Know the 800 W and no-battery rules, and be ready to explain the difference: a proper MCS system gets paid for its export, a plug-in panel doesn't.

[ Worth a line in your own customer emails this month: plug-in solar is now legal, here's what it does and doesn't do. Better they hear it from you first. ]

Category | This month's standout picks

Solar panels: Aiko Neostar 3P (low-light, 30-yr); JA Solar DeepBlue 4.0 Pro (value); REC Alpha Pure-RX (shading)

Inverters: Fox ESS KH/KA Series (all-rounder); Sunsynk ECCO (control); SolarEdge Home Wave (shade); Enphase IQ9N — new GaN micro (complex roofs); Sigenergy SigenStor Neo (all-in-one, new July)

Heat pumps (R290): Vaillant aroTHERM Plus (quiet); Mitsubishi Ecodan R290 (easier siting, £200 off 5 kW); Grant Aerona 290 (value); Viessmann Vitocal 200-A ie (from autumn)

EV chargers: Zappi (solar diversion, now with zapsafe protection); Ohme Home Pro (smart-tariff auto); Hypervolt Home 3 Pro (all-round); Pod Solo 3S (value — Pod Point is now "Pod", under EDF)

THIS MONTH'S BEST DEALS

What's worth putting in a quote this month across all three trades — including one that pays you, not the customer.

HEAT PUMPS — £9,000 BUS on oil & LPG homes

Off-gas-grid oil and LPG properties only — gas homes stay at £7,500. Air-to-water and ground-source, and it stacks with 0% VAT on the install. Full details above.

EXPORT BUNDLES — Supplier-install export rates:

Good Energy 25p, OVO 20p, EDF 18p

These only pay if the supplier or its partner network does the install — it's what their sales teams will be offering your customers. The answer: Octopus Flux pays up to 29.32p peak on any battery home, whoever installed it (see tariffs).

EV CHARGERS — £500 per socket EV charger grant — final year

Renters and flat owners, landlords (up to 200 sockets) and workplaces (up to 40 sockets). Runs to 31 March 2027 with no replacement announced. The chargepoint must be notified to the DNO before the claim goes in.

INSTALLER CASH — Baxi: £500 cashback per ASHP install, uncapped, to 31 December

HP40 and HP60 monoblocs. MCS-certified installs registered through Baxi Works. Paid to the installer within 28–45 days, no cap on the number of installs.

BATTERY VALUE — Free electricity sessions and flexibility payments

Octopus is running summer Free Electricity Sessions again, and NESO's Demand Flexibility Service now runs year-round — it also pays for using more in surplus windows. VPP platforms claim £120–£360 a year for a home battery. Quote it as an estimate, not a promise.

ENERGY TARIFFS THIS MONTH

The Q3 cap: electricity ~26.11p/kWh plus 57.19p/day standing charge, gas 7.33p/kWh. Ofgem publishes the October–December cap by 26 August. Cornwall Insight's forecast, including the VAT cut, is about £1,700 a year — roughly 2% up. We'll send a short email with the actual number the day it's published. Rates below verified late July 2026; SEG and smart rates change on ~30 days' notice, so check live before advising.

Solar export (SEG) — top rates

Octopus Flux: up to 29.32p/kWh peak (Battery + Octopus import)

Good Energy Solar Savings Excl.: 25p/kWh flat, 12-mo fix (Install via Good Energy partner)

OVO SEG Install Exclusive: up to 20p/kWh (OVO installs solar + battery)

EDF Export Exclusive (12m, V3): 18p/kWh fixed (Kit bought via EDF; ≤50 kWp (cut from 24p))

Outgoing Octopus: 12p/kWh flat (Octopus import)

Standard SEG floor: ~1–4p/kWh (Open to anyone)

British Gas's replacement rates after the 6 July change: Export Premium at 12p (≤15 kW) and Export Extra at 8p (>15 kW), BG import customers only.

Intelligent Octopus Flux (up to 32.17p peak) is still closed to new sign-ups; existing customers keep it. Import and export don't have to be with the same supplier.

EV charging — off-peak windows

Intelligent Octopus Go: 8p/kWh (23:30–05:30 + smart bonus slots (6-mo fix))

E.ON Next Drive: from ~8p/kWh (Smart) (00:00–06:00)

British Gas EV Power: 9p/kWh (00:00–05:00 (was "Electric Driver"))

OVO Charge Anytime is now ~14p/kWh pay-as-you-go or monthly plans. E.ON's early-year sub-7p rates have gone up — check the live rate at sign-up. Against the ~26p capped day rate, a decent off-peak EV tariff is often worth more per year than the £500 charger grant.

Heat pumps — dedicated tariffs

Cosy Octopus: ~13p off-peak (regional) (Triple-dip: 04–07, 13–16, 22–00)

EDF Heat Pump Tracker: standard rate minus 10p (04–07 & 13–16 windows)

Good Energy Heat Pump: 14p/kWh (Cheap windows 05–09 & 13–16)

ScottishPower Heat Pump Saver: 14p/kWh (11:00–16:00 window)

E.ON has replaced the 14p flat Heat Pump v2 with "Next Pumped" (discounted 22:00–06:00) — the rate was changing at the time of writing, so check E.ON's page before advising. OVO Heat Pump Plus is still closed to new customers. From 1 October the 0% electricity VAT applies to all of these; gas keeps its 5%.

[ None of this pays without MCS — suppliers won't pay SEG without a valid installation certificate, and import and export can sit with different suppliers. If the handover pack isn't right, your customer can't register for SEG — see how we handle handover packs. ]

QUESTION FROM AN INSTALLER

"I fitted a 4 kW solar system under G98 two years ago. The customer now wants to add a battery — is that just another G98 notification, or a new G99?"

It depends on the site's total generation capacity after the addition — a battery that can export counts as generation. If the combined inverter capacity stays at or under 16 A per phase (3.68 kW single-phase), it can still go through as G98. Add an AC-coupled battery with its own 3.6 kW inverter to an existing 3.68 kW system and you're over — the whole installation needs a G99, approved before you install.

Two ways to keep it simple. A DC-coupled battery behind the existing hybrid inverter that doesn't raise the site's export capacity usually leaves the original notification standing (check whether the DNO wants the storage unit logged). Or fit a G100-compliant export-limitation scheme to cap the site at its approved level — often the difference between a quick approval and a reinforcement job.

Not sure which side of the line a job falls? Reply with the spec and we'll tell you, no charge. Questions for next month's issue welcome too — we answer one per issue, named or anonymous.

WHERE WE WATCH

The sources behind this briefing.

Ofgem — ofgem.gov.uk

Price cap announcements, BUS guidance and SEG scheme rules.

Cornwall Insight — cornwall-insight.com

Independent price-cap forecasts ahead of each Ofgem announcement.

NESO — neso.energy

Connections reform timeline, Gate 2 windows and queue data.

GOV.UK — DESNZ & OZEV — gov.uk

Electricity VAT cut, BUS grant values and the plug-in solar rules.

MCS Certified — mcscertified.com

Redeveloped Installer Scheme transition, standards library and product directory.

Energy Networks Association — energynetworks.org

EREC G98/G99/G100 documentation and the ENA Type Test Register.

Solar Power Portal — solarpowerportal.co.uk

UK trade coverage of solar PV, storage, policy and market data.

Renewable Energy Installer — renewableenergyinstaller.co.uk

MCS changes, product news and installer business guidance.

Energy Stats UK — energy-stats.uk

Independent smart-tariff pricing across all 14 DNO regions.

MoneySavingExpert — moneysavingexpert.com

Cross-checked import and export tariff comparisons.

HOW GRID GURU CAN HELP

One point of contact for the compliance and design side. Same-day G98 and EV notifications; G99 in 3–5 working days; domestic and commercial.

G98 DNO Notifications — Solar PV and storage G98 notifications — all networks
G99 DNO Applications — Full G99 applications, SLDs and DNO approvals
EV & Heat Pump Notifications — DNO notifications and commercial pre-applications, 1- & 3-phase
Solar PV Design — String sizing, shading analysis and technical specifications
Heat Pump Design — MCS-compliant ASHP design, including MCS 021 documentation
MCS Handover Packs — Compliant domestic & commercial solar PV and heat pump packs
Consultancy — Regulatory guidance, compliance queries and project support

THIS MONTH — FREE AUTUMN PIPELINE CHECK

Booked jobs for September and October? Reply with your job list — one line per job is enough — and we'll tell you which need a full G99, which are G98 or notification-only, and the realistic DNO lead time for each. Free, no obligation.

Grid Guru Group Ltd · Co. No. 14645213 · 02920 609009

neil@gridguru.co.uk · www.gridguru.co.uk