[downquark1]

The way they push smart metres is incredibly suspicious. I've seen videos from American companies that just outright lie that they are needed so they don't generate energy at unused hours.
They keep pushing the green angle, but that is almost non existent. The only benefit is that having a display in your house may (if you are paying attention) make you more conscious of the energy you are wasting.

It may just be so they don't have to pay metre readers but there is clearly an angle that benefits the company more than the customer.