half hourly metering

Almost every large business in the uk will have a half hourly electricity meter installed on their premises and for those that use the most electric power these are required by law. Other businesses can opt in to have them on a voluntary basis although it is thought that over time all business users will have half hourly metering systems that automatically hook up to smart meters so that they can monitor their electric usage and make efficiency savings and cut their costs.

What does a half hourly meter do ?

In it's basic format the meter simply sends a reading of the electric supply every half hour back to the energy company that is supplying the electricity. This is undertaken mainly by a mobile phone type of connection although some are made via fixed phone lines. This means that the meters do not have to be manually read, that bills are 100% accurate and up to date and is used to manage energy efficiency programmes via software either directly with the energy company or for the business themselves.

Any business that has a half hourly meter installed is also part of the carbon reduction commitment (CRC) programmes in the UK which is a carbon emissions trading scheme.

How to check if you have a half hour meter installed

It's very easy to see if you business already has a half hourly meter at your premises by looking at the meter number. The meter number begins with an "S" (captial letter) then two rows of numbers. If the top row starts with "00" then you have a half hour meter - these two numbers are also know as the profile class reference number - other numbers that also indicated a half hourly meter are 05, 06, 07 or 08 which indicates the meter is a light usage HHM or a voluntary HHM. The bottom row of numbers are your MPAN or meter point administration number which is something you may need for the CRC scheme as well as if you are thinking of switching your energy provider.