ESB to issue gift cards to the public as incentive to 'beat the peak' 

Last February, ESB Networks said it had enrolled 10,000 households in the Beat the Peak Domestic scheme, adding that it would be working with influencers and carrying out extensive advertising to attract even more households to the initiative. Picture: Larry Cummins

The ESB is to issue more than 400,000 digital gift cards to incentivise people to use electricity outside peak times. 

The State body has gone to tender for 400,000 digital gift vouchers, valid for at least 12 months.

ESB networks said that due to “a gap in generation” being identified across the peak winter period for the next three years, the entire energy industry has been called upon “to develop mitigation measures” in order to encourage usage when there is a surplus of renewable energy available on the national grid.

It said that following customer research, it has been established that the cost-of-living crisis is “the number one topic” at the forefront of its customers’ minds, and that the gift vouchers being commissioned must therefore be capable of being spent on household items and valid at outlets across the country, given the drive to ‘beat the peak’ is a national one.

The drive is described as a “nationwide domestic behavioural demand response campaign”.

ESB said that in circumstances where multiple vouchers are accumulated, that will be facilitated by the successful tenderer.

Beat the Peak Domestic was first run as a pilot programme in 2022 and earlier this year.

Last February, ESB Networks said it had enrolled 10,000 households in the scheme, adding that it would be working with influencers and carrying out extensive advertising to attract even more households to the pilot initiative.

It developed the scheme on foot of the urgent proposals from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) to change tariffs in the face of the significant risk to Ireland’s electricity supply in the near and future term.

Separately, the ESB has tendered for up to 13,500 digital gift cards for its employees ahead of the Christmas season. The combined cost of the contract is €21m, including the 400,000 gift cards being issued to the public. 

The body, which earlier this year reported operating profits of €676m for the first six months of 2023, has called for the provision of two tranches of up to 6,200 e-vouchers at a value of €1,000 apiece and a further two purchases of up to 550 of the digital cards worth €500 each, for a total value of €12,950,000.

The cards, which are required to maintain validity for at least 12 months, are to be delivered electronically to all employees from early December. At least 500 of them will be made available to employees without access or the ability to manage an electronic version.

The contract documents calls for “periodic reporting” in the months following the delivery of the cards “to identify individual recipients with no usage on their card”.

ESB said it would reserve the right to utilise the successful contractor for any subsequent gift card schemes it may run between now and the end of 2025.