Solar eclipse will provide free energy to consumers in the United Kingdom.

With the solar eclipse approaching this Wednesday (12), consumers in Great Britain are being encouraged to temporarily change their electricity consumption habits. The strategy even includes an unusual reward: an hour of free energy over the weekend.

According to The Guardian newspaper, Octopus Energy, a residential energy provider in the country, has asked customers to avoid using appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers between 18 pm and 20 pm local time.

The initiative is related to the expected impact of the phenomenon on photovoltaic generation. During the eclipse, the Moon could cover up to 95% of the Sun in some regions of Great Britain, causing a temporary drop in solar energy production.

Across Europe, it is estimated that around 9,7 GW of generation will be temporarily interrupted during the period of greatest impact from the phenomenon.

In the UK alone, the reduction could range between 700 MW and 1,3 GW. In Spain, where the effects will be even greater, solar generation could fall by up to 5 GW, according to the country's electricity system operator.

The rapid drop in photovoltaic production has put operators and companies in the European electricity sector on alert, as it will be necessary to balance the system while solar generation decreases and then increases again after the eclipse ends.

The phenomenon will be fully visible in a band across the Northern Hemisphere that includes parts of Greenland, Iceland, and Spain. In Great Britain, the eclipse will be partial.

Consumers will be rewarded.

To help reduce demand precisely during the drop in solar power generation, Octopus decided to enlist the participation of consumers themselves.

Customers enrolled in the company's rewards program who participate in the initiative and shift part of their consumption to another time will be entitled to one hour of free electricity next weekend.

The expectation is that activities that can be postponed, such as using washing machines and dishwashers, will be carried out outside the most critical period of the eclipse.

With this, the company intends to reduce pressure on the electrical system and decrease the need to resort to additional gas-fired power plants to temporarily compensate for the loss of photovoltaic generation.

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