Spain's New Variable Price Electricity

[Jethro_uk]

You find yourself wondering where they make up their shortfall from then ...

[Jethro_uk]

It was the overall mantra of privatisations - starting with British Telecom. "Better choice for the consumer even if our mates in the city make a killing.

So, 30 years on, where the fuckity f*ck is my choice ?

[Robin]

It was a recurring theme of privatisations /before/ water. I don't see you have cause for complaint just because you assumed the same would be true of water.

DIY? As in f*ck off and dig a f****ng great well and sewage treatment plant?

[David Wade]

There has always been some element of tariffs which vary by time in Spain. Originally when they started rolling out new meters they insisted that you had room for two meters in the meter box.

There is also one big difference between Spain and the UK. In Spain you pay for the size of your feed via the standing charge. So unlike the UK where you pay a flat charge, in Spain its per maximum load. So you can choose between rates from around 2Kw up to 10Kw.

In Spain they have the same Smart meters except that they are mandatory and as a customer you must pay for them. They also enforce the above Kw limit so if you exceed your maximum load your pweer blips.

Power in Spain seems mire unreliable in the UK.

Dave

[David Wade]

The Spanish Smart meters are very similar to the UK ones except you don't get an in house display. They also cap the maximum load. You also have no option. You have to have one and you have to pay for it.

They are Smart. You just don't get an in house display.

I think this is what will happen in the UK.

[bert]

Makes comparing suppliers a bit tricky.

[Andrew]

From the people who waste water unnecessarily or used far more than I did and expected me to pay for it.

[Andrew]

Err, no. With gas and electricity all the inputs are fed into the respective grid system. The users all tap into these two grid systems. The gas and electrons could have come from anywhere on the grid.

[Robin]

A national water grid has been looked at many times. What I've never seen are plans for a national sewage grid.

[charles]

The electrons I buy are blue ones from Scotland

[Pancho]

Interesting article on Aluminium Ion batteries.

60 times faster charge than lithium ion. At that rate people could charge during the day.

[Max Demian]

How would a water grid change things?

[charles]

I could buy Scottish water here in Surrey. It isn't full of calcium

[The Natural Philosopher]

do you really think you could? And at what price to have it pumped all the way cheaper to buy a water softener

[Tim Streater]

Of course. So as Max said, competition is between the people who send out the bills, for gas and electric. Your "supplier" is doing a billing operation, although some generate volts too. Your actual volts are supplied by (e.g. in my case) UK Power Networks, who are the people I call when there's a power cut. I don't call EDF (who I pay the money to).

You could have various suppliers for water even without a water grid, but I've no idea whether that scales well.

[Tim Streater]

No you couldn't.

[Tim Streater]

He sounds like a fathead who thinks that if he signs up to some so-called green electric supplier, none of his volts will come from nuclear.

[charles]

no, but it makes about as much sense as buying 'green' electricity

I have one ;-)

[Tim+]

I believe it?s always been scuppered by pumping costs. Water companies are already one of the biggest consumers of electricity in the country.

Tim

[charles]

I was allowing you to point out the obvious.