The Smart Export Guarantee, or SEG, is the Great Britain framework under which qualifying electricity suppliers pay eligible small-scale generators for electricity exported to the grid. It covers solar PV and several other low-carbon technologies, but it is not a single government-set rate.
Suppliers design their own SEG tariffs. Every compliant rate must remain above zero, and payment must be based on actual export meter readings.
Who can use the SEG
Eligible technologies include solar PV, wind, hydro, anaerobic digestion, and micro-combined heat and power. Solar, wind, hydro, and anaerobic-digestion installations can have total installed capacity up to 5 MW; micro-CHP has a lower 50 kW limit.
The installation must be in Great Britain, meaning England, Scotland, or Wales. Northern Ireland has separate electricity-market arrangements and is not covered by the GB SEG framework.
Domestic solar is comfortably below the scheme's maximum capacity, but it still has to meet the supplier's evidence and metering requirements.
Certification and evidence
Ofgem guidance allows a supplier to require evidence that the installation meets suitable standards. For typical domestic solar, an MCS certificate is the recognised evidence route used by most suppliers.
Keep the MCS certificate, commissioning date, installed capacity, technology details, installer information, paid invoice, DNO correspondence, and meter identifiers. Missing documentation can delay an application even when the panels work correctly.
MCS certification for solar explains the handover pack and how to verify the contractor.
Export metering
SEG payments use measured export, not an assumed percentage of generation. The meter must be capable of recording exports at half-hourly intervals, although suppliers can collect readings in different operational ways.
A smart meter often provides the required export register, but having a smart meter does not mean the supplier has automatically configured an export account. The import MPAN and export MPAN are separate identifiers.
Ask the SEG supplier what meter evidence it needs and whether an export MPAN has been created. Do not assume the display on an inverter is sufficient for settlement.
Choosing a SEG supplier
The SEG licensee does not have to be the same business that supplies the home's imported electricity or gas. A homeowner can, in principle, separate those relationships.
In practice, some of the strongest export offers may be limited to customers who also buy electricity, own specified equipment, use a compatible battery, accept remote control, or meet another commercial condition. Compare the whole arrangement.
Use the SEG supplier comparison framework rather than relying on a rate remembered from an old article.
Fixed, variable, and time-based tariffs
A fixed export tariff pays one rate for every eligible exported kWh during the contract period. A variable rate can change under the supplier's terms. Time-of-use export tariffs pay different rates by time and may reward exports during evening demand.
Time-based tariffs can suit a controllable battery, but the opportunity depends on battery efficiency, usable capacity, import price, export price, control software, reserve settings, and warranty conditions.
Read tariff schedules carefully. A high peak export rate may apply for a short window while exports outside that period earn less.
SEG and batteries
Solar-charged battery exports can be eligible where the supplier can distinguish or accepts the arrangement under its tariff. Grid-charged battery exports create additional questions about source verification and tariff conditions.
Ofgem permits suppliers to decide whether they pay for electricity exported from storage where some or all of the energy originated from the grid. Suppliers may require declarations, metering arrangements, or technical controls.
Confirm the rules before buying a battery around an export strategy. Tariff access can change during the battery's life.
SEG is different from the Feed-in Tariff
The Feed-in Tariff scheme closed to new applicants in 2019. Existing accredited installations may continue receiving generation and export payments under their FIT arrangements.
An owner cannot receive SEG payments and FIT export payments for the same exported electricity. Some FIT participants can opt out of deemed export payments and use measured SEG export instead, subject to the applicable processes and economics.
Do not cancel or alter an existing FIT arrangement without checking the consequences.
Application sequence
- Complete the installation and obtain the MCS certificate and handover documents.
- Confirm the DNO notification or approval has been handled.
- Make sure a compliant export meter is installed and commissioned.
- Compare current SEG offers and all linked conditions.
- Apply with the requested identity, ownership, installation, and metering evidence.
- Record the contract start, tariff, export MPAN, reading process, and payment cycle.
- Check the first statement against meter data.
Payment normally starts according to the accepted contract, not simply from the day panels were switched on. Apply promptly after the evidence is ready.
Switching and moving home
SEG contracts have their own terms. Check notice periods, exit conditions, rate changes, and whether switching import supplier affects eligibility.
When selling a home, provide installation and export documentation to the buyer and solicitor. The new owner normally needs to establish their own export-payment arrangement. Existing credits and meter readings should be reconciled at completion.
Common SEG mistakes
- Selecting a system based on an export rate that is no longer offered.
- Assuming a smart meter automatically creates SEG payments.
- Losing the MCS certificate or DNO records.
- Comparing export rates while ignoring import tariff and standing charge.
- Assuming every supplier accepts grid-charged battery exports.
- Confusing an inverter's generation data with settlement-grade export data.
- Changing an existing FIT arrangement without reviewing lost benefits.
The Smart Export Guarantee is valuable because exported electricity receives a real metered payment. Its practical value comes from a complete tariff comparison and clean documentation, not from treating SEG as one permanent national price.