Scotland has opened its first Zero Bills homes, with 57 properties at the Tranent Grove development in Dundee eligible for a tariff that covers household energy costs for up to 10 years.
Each home is equipped with solar panels, heat pumps, home batteries, and smart meters to generate and manage most of its own electricity.
The site is the first in Scotland for Octopus Energy’s scheme, which is part of a nationwide rollout targeting 100,000 of the eco homes by 2030.
How Zero Bills homes work
Octopus Energy Zero Bills homes are designed to produce the majority of their own energy on-site. Residents are allocated 10 megawatt-hours (MWh) of free electricity per year – roughly enough for a well-insulated three-bedroom house.
The homes use a combination of solar panels, solar batteries, and heat pumps, along with smart energy systems, to optimise electricity usage.
Any energy consumed beyond the annual allocation is charged at standard rates, and electricity used for charging electric vehicles is not included in the scheme.
Scotland the ‘perfect next spot’ for Zero Bills homes
“Scotland is a renewable energy powerhouse – making it the perfect next spot for us to roll out Zero Bills homes,” said Nigel Banks, Zero Bills Director at Octopus Energy.
He added that the scheme uses advanced technology to ensure energy is used when it is cheapest or greenest, while most households remain under the free energy threshold.
Octopus Energy launched the Zero Bills scheme in 2022 and has already approved eligibility for over 5,000 homes across the UK. The Dundee site aims to demonstrate how the technology can be applied in practice, with households benefitting from energy-efficient design combined with smart energy management.
Wider rollout and potential impact
The Zero Bills scheme is primarily targeted at new and self-build homes, but could expand to retrofitted older properties in the future.
By providing guaranteed free electricity for up to a decade, the scheme offers households financial certainty amid rising energy prices.
Octopus Energy plans to deliver 100,000 homes under the Zero Bills model by 2030, making energy-efficient, low-cost living more accessible to UK residents.
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