Octopus Energy launches UK’s first fully agile tariff for small businesses

Octopus Energy has launched the UK’s first fully dynamic electricity tariff for small and medium-sized businesses, giving firms the chance to cut their energy bills by more than 25% by shifting usage to the cheapest and greenest times of day.

The new tariff, Shape Shifters: Agile, updates prices every 30 minutes in line with real-time wholesale energy rates. SME customers will be able to view the next day’s prices in advance via an online portal, allowing them to plan their operations around periods of lowest cost and lowest carbon intensity.

Octopus said many small businesses, such as dry cleaners, bakeries and breweries, already run energy-intensive processes outside peak times and would save money automatically by switching to the new tariff. Companies willing to adapt their schedules further could unlock even larger reductions by moving activity away from the daily peak between 4pm and 7pm. Some early trial participants have reported savings worth thousands of pounds a year.

Businesses that already schedule high-consumption tasks off-peak can deepen those benefits by pairing the tariff with clean technologies such as electric vehicles, on-site batteries or heat pumps, taking advantage of ultra-cheap overnight electricity.

The launch comes at a time when rising energy prices remain a heavy burden for companies. More than a quarter of UK businesses say they are struggling with energy costs, according to recent survey data.

Shape Shifters: Agile builds on the success of Octopus’s existing SME time-of-use tariff, Shape Shifters: Trio, which offers three price bands for night, day and peak periods. Trio has helped some businesses shift up to 98% of their peak usage into cheaper hours, demonstrating what Octopus says is strong appetite among SMEs to embrace flexible energy use.

Zoisa North-Bond, CEO of Octopus Energy for Business, said the new agile tariff represents the next step in helping companies control costs while supporting the transition to a cleaner energy system.

“Many businesses are struggling with energy costs and are keen to use energy outside peak times to save money,” she said. “Octopus has pioneered smart tariffs for years, and we’re proud to unlock even more opportunities for them to tap into the greenest, cheapest power available.”

One of the first to trial the tariff, Parmjit, owner of Milton Chippy in Stoke-on-Trent, said the impact had been immediate.

“By shifting prep times and being smarter about what we switch on and when, we’ve already saved hundreds of pounds,” he said. “It keeps the deep fryers running without frying our budget.”

Octopus business customers have already shown their willingness to shift usage when needed, taking part in the company’s “Saving Sessions” scheme, which saw thousands of SMEs reduce their demand during peak periods in 2023-24, cutting more than 20% of their consumption at critical moments.

The Shape Shifters: Agile tariff is available to SMEs across the UK, with more details provided on the dedicated Shape Shifters website.