Samsung Electronics will launch a pilot program for "smart appliance cashback" in collaboration with Korea Electric Power Corporation that returns part of the electricity bill when people use home appliances during hours with high renewable energy generation.
Samsung Electronics said it has added application and linking functions to the SmartThings smart home platform application (app) for the smart appliance cashback program, which will run for two months starting on the 1st.
The smart appliance cashback program is designed to encourage power consumption during hours when renewable energy, such as solar, is generating abundantly. If participating customers use eligible appliances between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on weekends and public holidays, they can receive 100 won per 1 kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity used. The cashback is capped at 300 won per hour and is provided as a bill deduction or refund.
Eligible appliances are four categories: washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, and clothing care machines. The target products were selected for their relatively high share of power use and the ease of adjusting usage times. Users of Samsung Electronics appliances can apply for the cashback program in the SmartThings app. In the app's Life tab, select the smart appliance cashback connection button in the Energy service, then agree to sign up and share device usage data. After that, using appliances connected to SmartThings during the eligible hours will apply the cashback.
By using SmartThings' scheduling feature, users can preset appliance operation times to the cashback-eligible hours, such as scheduling a washing machine or dryer to run on weekend mornings. Samsung Electronics also offers functions to check the real-time power consumption of connected appliances through SmartThings Energy and to manage power use by product using "AI saving mode."
It is also working with overseas energy companies. Samsung Electronics is operating electricity bill–saving services with Enel in Italy, British Gas in the United Kingdom, and Coolblue in the Netherlands. In June, it launched a service with Enel that provides up to 180 kWh of free laundry power over two years to customers who purchase Samsung washing machines. With British Gas, it introduced a plan that offers a 50% discount on weekend electricity rates. In May, Samsung Electronics became the first among domestic companies to sign the European Union's Code of Conduct for Energy Smart Appliances (CoC).