Midsummer launches free battery monitoring service for GivEnergy customers
UK – Midsummer has launched a free monitoring and optimisation service for GivEnergy battery owners, following the introduction of premium subscription charges for some GivEnergy cloud software features.
The UK renewables wholesaler has released the Smug app, cloud service and Smug Bug in-home display. The service allows customers to view battery state of charge, monitor power flows and optimise charging and export around time-of-use electricity tariffs.
The launch follows changes for GivEnergy customers after GivEnergy Ltd entered administration earlier this year. Its app and portal are operated by GivEnergy Software Ltd, which has introduced a paid premium tier covering remote access, automation, insights and optimisation.
Free monitoring and optimisation
The Smug Bug detects compatible inverters on a local WiFi network and displays battery state of charge and power flows on screen. Data is also sent to a secure cloud service, allowing users to monitor their system remotely through the Smug app.
Midsummer said the app and display currently work with GivEnergy, FoxESS and Eleven Energy inverters, with wider compatibility expected soon.
“We were very disappointed by the recent announcement that a premium subscription would be needed to access features that customers had expected would be free for the lifespan of their battery systems.
Andy Rankin – Managing Director, Midsummer Energy
Tariffs and flexibility
Users can add time-of-use tariff details to the app, allowing the service to optimise when the battery imports and exports electricity.
The system can charge when electricity is cheaper and export surplus solar power during higher tariff periods. Midsummer said users could save several hundred pounds a year, depending on their system, tariff and usage.
Midsummer also plans to connect the service to flexibility markets, allowing customers to be paid for occasionally making their battery available to support the electricity grid.
The Smug app and optimisation service will remain free. When flexibility services are added, Midsummer plans to share income with customers to help cover the cost of providing the service.
Response to subscription changes
Andy Rankin, Managing Director at Midsummer and who leads software development, said: ” As a supplier of GivEnergy products, we felt we had a responsibility to our customers to provide a better service. And as a GivEnergy battery owner myself, I had a convenient system to test our prototypes on. Our software team have done an amazing job to bring this product to market in just a couple of months.”
Product pricing
The Smug Bug is available in two versions through Midsummer Wholesale. The standard version costs £40 plus VAT, while the smaller mini version costs £25 plus VAT.
Midsummer is a wholesaler of renewable energy products and the developer of the Easy PV and Heatpunk software platforms for designing and managing solar and heat pump installations.
