SEG Rates for Businesses in 2026: Business Export Tariffs Compared
Updated 23 October 2026 · SEO Dons Editorial
What do Ofgem's figures say about the market?
Ofgem's Year 5 report (April 2024 to March 2025, published 5 December 2025) is the official benchmark. It counted 50 tariffs from 11 licensees, up from 37 tariffs in Year 4. Of those 50, 21 were open to all eligible generators and 29 applied only to generators meeting extra criteria. By the end of the year 270,395 installations were registered, with a combined capacity of 1,585 MW, and 99.98% were solar PV. Licensees reported 443.1 GWh of exports and paid £56.97 million, against 283.1 GWh and £30.75 million in Year 4.
Divide the totals and Year 5 works out at about 12.9p per exported kWh, and Year 4 at about 10.9p. That is illustrative arithmetic on Ofgem's totals, not an Ofgem rate, and it needs care. It blends every tariff, fixed and variable. The installations average about 5.9 kW each (1,585 MW across 270,395), so small systems dominate. The report summary page does not split business from household installations. Treat the figure as a sense check, not a target: a business offer far from it deserves a question about its terms.
What do suppliers' business pages say about their tariffs?
The table records what four suppliers' own business export pages said on 22 October 2026. A pence rate would appear in the last column only where the supplier's page dates it. None of the pages did, so the column says so, and the supplier's page is the place to read its current rate.
| Supplier | Tariff as named | Fixed or variable | Who can take it | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| British Gas business | Business SEG: low-capacity, high-capacity and non-supply rates | "Variable Price SEG tariff" with no fixed end date (blog, 5 August 2025) | Below 15kW and 15kW to 5MW for existing business electricity customers; non-supply rate for others, up to 5MW | Not dated |
| E.ON Next | Next Export Business v1 | Fixed for 12 months | SME or commercial customers up to 5MW, new and existing | Not dated |
| E.ON Next | Next Flex Export v1 | Variable | Customers with generation up to 5MW, new and existing | Not dated |
| EDF | Export 12M Small Business | 1-year fixed | Existing EDF electricity customers | Not dated |
| EDF | SEG Export Variable Value | Variable | EDF electricity customers only | Not dated |
| EDF | SEG Export Variable | Variable | Anyone, EDF customer or not | Not dated |
| Octopus Energy | Panel Power (separate from the SEG) | Flat rate | Solar businesses under 150 kWp that receive energy from Octopus Energy for Business | Not dated |
The pages do carry dates, but of terms rather than rates. The British Gas business guide is dated 5 August 2025. EDF's variable tariff terms are "Applicable to new sales from 10 February 2023". E.ON Next's SEG terms and conditions are "effective from 24 November 2025". A rate that a supplier can change without a dated notice on the page is not safe to print, which is why the last column is empty.
Octopus adds that a business can "join the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) instead" of Panel Power. For how the application, MPAN and meter work, see the Smart Export Guarantee for businesses.
Which export tariffs are domestic-only or restricted?
Read the eligibility lines, not the headline rate. E.ON Next's Next Export Premium v3 and Next Export Exclusive v3 are for "a residential customer" with solar up to 15kW, so they are household tariffs. Octopus's own SEG page is written for export-only customers and sends a business to a separate page. EDF reserves two of its three small-business tariffs for its electricity customers. Ofgem's count of 29 restricted tariffs out of 50 shows the pattern across the market.
How should a business judge an export offer?
Ofgem advises generators to "shop around to find the best SEG tariff for them", and says the licensee sets the rate, contract length and other terms, with the rate always above zero. In practice that means checking:
- Fixed or variable. E.ON Next's business tariff is fixed for 12 months. EDF's variable prices "may go up or down", with at least 5 days' written notice of a change.
- Size band. British Gas separates rates below 15kW from 15kW to 5MW; Octopus stops Panel Power at 150 kWp.
- Import link. Several tariffs need the licensee to supply your electricity too, and British Gas moves you to its non-supply tariff if you change import supplier.
- Exit terms and payment rhythm. EDF and E.ON Next state no exit fees. British Gas pays every 3 months.
- Metering, data and timing. E.ON Next asks for a smart export meter and consent for half-hourly data. Octopus says its application process can take up to 10 weeks.
How much does the export rate move payback?
Take two hypothetical sites. The assumptions are invented for the arithmetic: on self-used power alone each has a simple payback of 7 years. The first exports little, so export at an illustrative 4p per kWh adds 8% to its annual benefit. The second exports a much larger share of its output, so the same 4p adds 20%. Export income scales with the rate, so doubling the rate doubles each percentage.
| Illustrative export rate | Low-export site: adds to benefit, payback | High-export site: adds to benefit, payback |
|---|---|---|
| 4p per kWh | 8%, 6.5 years (7 divided by 1.08) | 20%, 5.8 years (7 divided by 1.20) |
| 8p per kWh | 16%, 6.0 years (7 divided by 1.16) | 40%, 5.0 years (7 divided by 1.40) |
| 12p per kWh | 24%, 5.6 years (7 divided by 1.24) | 60%, 4.4 years (7 divided by 1.60) |
Going from 4p to 12p shortens payback by about 0.8 of a year at the low-export site and about 1.5 years at the high-export site. The percentages are the assumption doing the work: they rise with the share of output a site exports and fall as the price of the electricity a self-used unit replaces rises. A site that exports little barely moves, so chasing the top export rate matters most where export is large. Put your own export share and a licensee's rate into the savings calculator rather than relying on the table. If you are moving off the Feed-in Tariff, the sums differ, and FiT export vs SEG sets them out. Comparing installer quotes? Ask which export rate and licensee each payback figure assumes, then request a quote; we reply by email.
Sources and last checked
- Ofgem: Year 5 annual report, 5 December 2025; SEG generators; SEG electricity suppliers, checked 22 October 2026.
- Licensee pages, used only for facts about that supplier: British Gas business; British Gas business guide, 5 August 2025; E.ON Next; EDF; Octopus SEG; Octopus Panel Power (pence rates left out because none is dated), checked 22 October 2026.
Common questions
Do I have to buy my electricity from the same supplier to get an export tariff?
Not in law: Ofgem says a generator can apply to any SEG licensee. In practice several tariffs need an import contract, and Ofgem counted 29 of the 50 tariffs in Year 5 as restricted by criteria such as importing from the same supplier.
Is there a minimum export rate?
The only floor Ofgem states is that a SEG tariff rate must always be above zero. Within that, each licensee chooses the rate, the contract length and its other terms.
Are export rates fixed for the life of the system?
No. Contract length is the licensee's choice. E.ON Next's business tariff is fixed for 12 months, EDF's variable tariffs can go up or down, and British Gas describes a variable tariff with no fixed end date.
Where do I find a supplier's current rate?
On the supplier's own page. Each licensee publishes its application process on its website, and the pages linked in the sources list are the ones checked for this table.