British households have received almost £100m for selling surplus solar electricity back to the grid through Octopus Energy during the past year.
More than 400,000 households are now using the supplier’s export tariffs, receiving an average payment of £244 over the 12-month period.
Collectively, customers exported more than 825 GWh of spare electricity to the grid — an amount Octopus says is equivalent to the annual output of a medium-sized gas-fired power station.
Interest in domestic solar installations has also risen during the UK’s latest spell of hot weather.
SOLAR ENQUIRIES JUMP BY A THIRD
Almost 74,000 people enquired about having solar panels installed by Octopus during May, June and July, representing an increase of 34% compared with the same three months last year.
On 26 June, the hottest day of 2026 at that point, the volume of solar enquiries was 50% above the monthly average.
Demand for standalone battery installations increased even more sharply, rising by 630% year-on-year over the three-month period.
Home batteries allow households to store cheaper electricity for later use or sell surplus power back to the grid when wholesale prices are higher.
HOME-GENERATED ENERGY GROWS
Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, Chief Product and Marketing Officer at Octopus Energy, says: “Over 400,000 UK households on Octopus tariffs are already generating their own clean energy, and that number just keeps climbing.
“The more we make use of our homegrown green energy sources, the less we rely on fossil fuels, and the more secure our energy system becomes.”
Solar power is playing an increasingly significant role in Britain’s energy mix. Octopus says rooftop and ground-mounted installations generated a record 14.4% of the country’s electricity demand during 2026.
The figures indicate that the financial case for adding solar panels and battery storage is becoming a more prominent consideration for homeowners alongside lower household emissions and greater energy independence.
