Energy & Climate
Becoming energy independent
Mark Millar, CEO of Puredrive Energy, on why energy cost hikes are creating ‘a wave of energy-independent thinkers’.
9 June 2022
This article first appeared in our Earth Day 2026 issue of My Green Pod Magazine. Click here to subscribe to our digital edition and get each issue delivered straight to your inbox
Main image: The Duracell Dura5 home battery system in situ
There’s a quiet contradiction at the heart of modern sustainable living.
We’ve become more conscious of the visible choices in our lives; decisions we make about the food we buy, the clothes we wear and the way we travel have become expressions of our values – small but meaningful ways to reduce our impact on the planet.
Yet one of the most significant contributors to our carbon footprint remains largely untouched – not through neglect, but because it’s so easy to overlook.
Energy presents itself in a different way. It doesn’t sit in front of us or demand attention; it moves invisibly through our homes, powering everything from the kettle to the heating, arriving when we need it and rarely prompting us to question how it got there or was generated.
For most of us it is simple: we use it and we pay for it. But that relationship is beginning to shift.
For the first time, households have the opportunity not just to consume energy but to engage with it, and to shape when and how it’s used.
At the centre of that shift is home battery storage, a technology that, while often discussed in technical terms, is quietly changing something much bigger: our role in the energy system itself.
Spending time with someone who has a home battery reveals how subtle but meaningful that change can be. There’s no dramatic overhaul of daily life, no sense of disruption. But there is a growing awareness.
Energy becomes something you notice when it’s cheaper or greener, and your home is using more or less of it. It moves from the background into focus – not as a burden, but as something you can understand and influence. This shift becomes even more meaningful when paired with renewables.
Solar panels generate electricity during the middle of the day, often when homes are empty and demand is low. Without storage, much of that energy is exported back to the grid at a fraction of the price it costs to buy back. It isn’t wasted, but it isn’t always used in the way people expect when they invest in solar.
A battery changes that dynamic. It allows energy to be stored and used later, aligning generation with the rhythms of everyday life.
The electricity produced on a bright afternoon can power an evening meal, a washing cycle or the steady background demand of a home settling in for the night. Every aspect of a home’s energy use can be taken care of without compromise.
Importantly, this shift isn’t limited to homes with solar panels. As energy tariffs become more flexible, many households are beginning to use batteries to store electricity from the grid when it’s cheaper or when there is a higher proportion of renewable energy available.
That stored energy can then be used during peak times, reducing both costs and reliance on fossil-fuel heavy generation.
What emerges is a different kind of relationship with energy – one that is defined less by immediacy and more by intention.
Instead of using electricity the moment it is needed, a battery allows households to start thinking about timing, efficiency and impact. And while much of this can be automated through smart systems, the awareness it creates tends to extend beyond the technology itself.
People notice the dishwasher running overnight or the battery topping up before breakfast. They become more conscious of how their homes operate and how their habits align with the wider energy system.
This awareness often leads to further changes, including an interest in solar, electric vehicles and other ways to reduce reliance on traditional energy sources. The battery becomes less of a standalone solution and more of a starting point.
This shift has a broader significance that extends beyond individual households.
Energy systems have traditionally been centralised, with power generated in large facilities and distributed outward.
Renewable energy challenges that model, introducing variability and decentralisation.
Battery storage plays a crucial role in making that system work for homes as well as for the grid.
For companies working in this space, the opportunity and responsibility is to make this shift feel accessible, not overwhelming.
At Puredrive Energy, that focus is simple: it’s about helping households take control of their energy in a way that fits into everyday life. The aim is to give people the tools to reduce their reliance on the grid, store more of the energy available to them and use it more intelligently. That thinking runs through everything we build.
From battery systems designed specifically for UK homes and tariffs to smart technology that automates when energy is stored and used, our goal is to make lower cost, lower carbon living feel like a natural step rather than a technical leap.
As an authorised licensee of Duracell, that approach is underpinned by a focus on reliability, long-term performance and trust – values that matter when energy becomes something people depend on more actively within their homes.
This Earth Day, the focus is simple: we want to help households reduce both their energy bills and their carbon footprint, while moving closer to a future where clean energy is fully utilised and energy independence for homeowners is the norm.
Duracell is a registered trademark of Duracell Batteries BV and Duracell U.S. Operations, Inc., used under license. All rights reserved. Manufactured under license and warranty supported by Puredrive Energy at unit 18a & 18b, Orchard Industrial Estate, Evesham Rd, Toddington, Cheltenham, GL54 5EB, United Kingdom.
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