Octopus Energy - Can choosing Octopus Energy as your energy provider save you money on your electricity bills in Japan?

What is Octopus Energy?

Octopus Energy is a UK-based electric power company that first entered the power generation and sales market in 2016. It has since expanded its business to eight countries, including Japan, and now supplies electricity to over 3 million customers.

The company has a particular focus on promoting renewable energy and is working to develop environmentally-friendly electricity sales. Such initiatives have gained this growing new upstart company worldwide attention, including a business partnership with Tesla and a loan of approximately ¥68 billion from former US vice president Al Gore’s investment fund, Generation Investment Management.

In Japan, Octopus Energy joined forces with Tokyo Gas starting in February 2021 and began selling electricity rate plans to homes, offices, restaurants, and other customers.

For foreign residents in Japan, switching to Octopus Energy for your electricity needs could be an opportunity to cut down on energy costs. However, because the company does not currently offer service in English, we have provided this article to help you decide whether Octopus Energy is the right energy company for you and, if you decide that it is, to guide you through the necessary steps for registration with the company and paying your bills (on time).

If you are interested in switching to Octopus Energy, your best option as always is to contact Selectra Japan (0120-164-006) for a free consultation in English so that we can help you get registered (registration with Octopus directly is only currently available in Japanese). Give us a call and we’ll help you save money on your electricity bills!

What kinds of electricity rate plans does Octopus Energy offer?

For average homes, Octopus Energy offers a rate plan called Green Octopus (read on for key details).

① Octopus's lower per unit rates provide better overall deals than major traditional electric power providers

The Green Octopus plan is generally aligned with the standard plans offered by the major electric power providers in terms of base rate charges.

Where the difference can be found is in the per unit (kWh) rate (i.e. based on your electricity meter reading), which Green Octopus sets at a lower price than the major providers.

What this means (because the base rate charges are the same but the per unit charges are lower with Green Octopus) is that Green Octopus will save you money* (unless you don’t use any electricity at all)!

*Note: when fuel prices experience a marked rise, Octopus Energy’s fuel adjustment fee may also rise and thus the overall charges could be higher than the metered rates of the major electricity providers. This means that the savings that Octopus Energy typically offers through lower per unit (kWh) rates may not always be available, so make sure to monitor fuel prices along with the unit price of the fuel adjustment fee.

It is also possible to use this Octopus Energy simulation (link below) to check how such trends can affect how much money you can save with a Green Octopus plan.

② 100% Committed to Renewable Energy

Green Octopus is a rate plan that is 100% committed to renewable electricity. 

The company is able to pursue this commitment to renewable energy by purchasing Non-Fossil Fuel Certificates based on the amount of electricity that you use with your plan, thus offsetting any CO2 emissions associated with the generation of this electric power.

While there are more and more companies out there on the market offering renewable electricity rate plans via Non-Fossil Fuel Certificates, many of these plans have unit prices higher than, or equivalent to, those of the major electricity providers.

Because Octopus Energy sells 100% renewable electricity at a lower price than the major providers, its Green Octopus rate plan kills two birds with one stone (catches two octopi with one net?), making it easier to save on your electricity bills while doing your best to be environmentally conscious.

Green Octopus - List of Rates*

Arranged by region (and major traditional regional provider). Click on your region below to reveal the drop-down lists of rates. All rates listed below include tax. Please note that while the base rate for Octopus Energy is set at a per day rate, we have adjusted this to a per month rate in the above tables to make easier comparisons with other providers.