Czechs still often struggle to understand electricity sharing, survey finds

Czechs still often struggle to understand how community energy works. Their most common misconceptions include the idea that generated electricity can be stored for later use, that sharing automatically reduces energy bills, and confusion about who can take part. This is according to a survey by Talk Group for energy company E.ON. Electricity sharing in the Czech Republic has been operating in practice since September, and more than 14,000 participants had joined by the end of February.

Demand for sharing so far has exceeded E.ON’s initial expectations. „People want to make the most of the electricity they generate. The key, however, is for customers to have accurate information about how the system works. In our interactions with customers, we found that many still believe a number of half-truths and misconceptions,“ said Jan Zápotočný, vice-chairman of the board of E.ON Energie.

The survey, which involved more than 1,000 respondents, found that over 60 percent of those questioned were familiar with the concept of electricity sharing. However, many of them are unsure how sharing works in practice.

One of the most common misconceptions, believed by more than 36.5 percent of people according to the survey, is that generated electricity can be used at any time later at another consumption point. In reality, however, the electricity produced must be consumed within the same 15-minute interval in which it was generated. According to E.ON, consumption cannot be deferred until later.

Another common myth about sharing, according to the survey, is the belief that sharing automatically reduces energy bills, which 31 percent of people hold. More than 32 percent of respondents also believed that the more people participate in sharing, the better it is for them. According to E.ON, the reality in these cases is often different, and prospective participants should check with energy companies. The company offers its own service to help with this.

According to the survey, people are often unaware of the ways they can participate in sharing. Nearly 23 percent of respondents thought that only owners of photovoltaic power plants could take part. In reality, however, other consumers can also participate in sharing, as recipients of electricity, the company says.

Electricity sharing in Czechia was introduced by an amendment to the Energy Act passed the year before last. Electricity can be shared within a community, for example, or people can share electricity they generate themselves at another connection point, such as from a cottage to an apartment. Czechia has more than 3.7 million electricity consumption points. By the end of February, 14,138 of them had joined community energy, according to the Electricity Data Centre, including 5,198 generators. Over seven months, people shared a total of more than 3.15 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity in this way.