Bellway and Octopus Energy agree ‘zero bills’ homes partnership

Housebuilder Bellway has signed a deal with energy company Octopus to deliver homes which have no energy bills for the first five years.

The partnership will cover the pilot of three “zero bills” homes at Bellway’s Victoria Gate development in Stafford and a further 250 Zero Bills homes which are set to be delivered at a Bellway development in Bedfordshire in 2024. There is a potential for more sites to be developed soon.

The zero bills scheme guarantees no energy bills for homeowners for at least five years.

Based on current energy rates, for the first five years, zero bills households will save around £1,800 a year on energy bills compared to those on a standard variable tariff according to Bellway and Octopus.

The Future Homes standard, which will become mandatory from 2025, will require new homes built to produce 75-80% less carbon emissions than homes built under the current Building Regulations.

The homes have an air-source heat pump, a home battery, and roof-mounted solar panels, which are then optimised by Kraken, Octopus Energy’s tech platform.

Octopus Energy has delivered almost 1,000 zero bills homes across the UK through contracts with developers and housing providers.

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The company said it plans to deliver 50,000 Zero Bills homes globally by 2025. Octopus Energy is focusing on delivering zero bills new build homes, but also has plans to carry out retrofit applications of zero bills.

Jason Honeyman, CEO of Bellway, said: “We are proud to be the first national housebuilder to partner with Octopus to deliver Zero Bills homes at scale. These homes will be at the cutting edge of sustainable design and will also save our customers thousands of pounds in energy costs as cost-of-living challenges persist across the country.

“This long-term partnership is a key part of our delivery of energy efficient homes as we work towards the Future Homes Standard and it exemplifies our commitment to putting people and the planet first.”

Michael Cottrell, zero bills homes director at Octopus, said: ”having one of the UK’s largest housebuilders on board to develop their first Zero Bills homes is a momentous occasion for sustainable living”.