Grid Export explained
Grid export happens automatically whenever your solar panels produce more power than your home is consuming at that moment. In a typical UK home without a battery, 40–60% of solar generation is exported to the grid on a summer day.
In the past, exported electricity effectively disappeared into the grid with no financial return (under the old Feed-In Tariff, generation payments were made regardless of export). Today, the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) pays you for every kWh you export, at rates typically ranging from 3p to 15p/kWh depending on your chosen supplier.
Measuring your exports:
- Smart meter: automatically records export data half-hourly. Required for most SEG tariffs
- Export meter: a dedicated meter that records only exported power
- Deemed export: some older FIT contracts assumed you exported 50% of generation, without measuring
To maximise the value of your exports:
- Choose a SEG tariff with the highest export rate
- Consider time-of-use export tariffs that pay more at peak times
- Compare against adding battery storage to self-consume that power instead — at 24–28p/kWh self-consumption value vs 3–15p/kWh export value, storage often pays