tado°, the Munich-based home energy management company, acquired aWATTar, described as a pioneer in the field of dynamic energy tariffs, in 20221. The acquisition was set out in a company announcement dated 4 September 2024, which also unveiled new solar forecasting services for heat pumps and electric vehicles1. tado° said the purchase formed part of its vision to offer a complete home energy management package1.
The company said the deal sits alongside its existing work on dynamic energy tariffs, where a household's electricity tariff is analysed and a heat pump's operation or an electric vehicle's charging is adjusted automatically to the cheapest times of the day1. tado° said this scheduling runs through its Heat Pump Optimizer X and Balance for Heat Pumps subscription service, and through its Smart Charging App for electric vehicles1.
"In 2022, tado° acquired aWATTar, a pioneer in the field of dynamic energy tariffs, as part of its vision to offer a complete yet simple home energy management solutions package that reshapes the way energy is consumed for more comfort, savings, and in sync with nature."
The announcement gave no purchase price, no completion date within 2022 and no terms for the aWATTar transaction; none of these have been reported1. tado° said it was founded in Munich in 2011 and employs more than 200 people from 45 countries1. It describes itself as an open platform for heating controls and related home energy hardware1.
The same announcement set out the newer solar forecasting feature, which the company said predicts how much electricity a home's solar panels will produce the following day and then runs the heat pump or charges the electric vehicle during those hours1. Households enter details of their photovoltaic system, including peak generation capacity, address, direction and roof tilt1. tado° said it estimates the forecasts are up to 80 per cent accurate, and that if there is no sunshine the heat pump or charger reverts to the owner's normal scheduling1. The company said about 50 per cent of heat pump owners in Germany and 45 per cent in the UK also have solar panels1.
| Item | Detail as reported |
|---|---|
| Acquisition | aWATTar, dynamic energy tariffs |
| Year | 2022 |
| Announced in | tado° release dated 4 September 2024 |
| Price and terms | Not reported |
| Related service | Tariff-based scheduling of heat pumps and EV charging |
| Solar forecasting accuracy | Up to 80 per cent, per tado° |
Why it matters for households
Dynamic tariffs only pay off if a home can shift its heaviest loads into the cheapest half-hour periods, and heat pumps and electric vehicle charging are among the largest loads in a home1. A company that owns both the thermostat and heat pump controls and the tariff platform can move those loads automatically, rather than leaving the household to watch prices and switch devices by hand1. For a home with solar panels, the same logic applies to self-consumption: using generated electricity on site avoids buying it from the grid, and tado° said the approach can also reduce grid fees in countries such as Germany1. The company said the aim is to cut electricity drawn from the grid and lower bills1. How much any individual household saves is not stated in the announcement1.
What happens next
tado° said development work on the forecasting service is continuing to make it more powerful for customers1. No further dates or completion milestones for the aWATTar integration were given1.