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Posts Tagged ‘FiT’

How solar PV can help meet Band D

Solar sector celebrates as government ties PV installation to energy efficiency rules

The government has confirmed that solar PV modules could contribute to a building’s energy efficiency rating, making it easier for properties that install solar panels to qualify for feed-in tariff incentives.

Under recent changes to the solar feed-in tariff scheme, anyone wishing to register for the solar electricity feed-in tariff from 1 April must obtain a Level D Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) on their property.

The change received a cautious welcome from the solar industry as it marks a significant improvement on the government’s original plan for limiting solar feed-in tariffs to properties that achieve the stricter Level C rating or above.

Solar companies had warned a Level C requirement would “kill off” the industry as many businesses and households would not be prepared to pay thousands of pounds for the energy efficiency measures required to ensure they qualified for solar incentives.

Currently, just over half of all residential properties meet EPC Band D requirements, a significant increase on the 13 per cent that meet Band C criteria. Meanwhile, 65 per cent of those non-domestic buildings that carry EPCs have obtained Band D or above.

February 20, 2012 9:25 am - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Shropshire Council approve solar photovoltaic plans

Shropshire Council’s Cabinet approved a plan this week to install up to 30 solar photovoltaic (PV) installations on council owned buildings.

Councillors approved the £2.5 million investment which would produce 3,200 to 39,600 kilowatt hours of electricity each year, and generate annual income for the council under the ‘feed-in tariff’ (FIT) scheme.

For the council this will also achieve a reduction in its carbon emissions footprint, further saving on its ‘carbon tax’ liability under the CRC Energy Efficiency scheme, a Government initiative aimed at improving energy efficiency and cutting emissions in large public and private sector organisations. If all of the proposed schemes gain planning consent and Distribution Network Operators approval, they could cumulatively save 500 tonnes CO2 annually.

The Government had proposed dropping the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) payment by 50%, ie from 43.3 pence per kilowatt hour to 21 pence per kilowatt hour for 4 kilowatt power systems, with effect from 12 December 2011. That proposal has been ruled unlawful by the courts, but it is still expected to be introduced in the near future when the scheme is reviewed again.

February 9, 2012 4:39 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Government loses appeal bid against High Court solar FiT ruling

The Government has lost its appeal bid against a High Court ruling that its plans to cut the Feed-in Tariff for solar electricity were unlawful.

The judgement handed down this morning by the Court of Appeal means the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) will not be able to go ahead with its plans to cut the FiT subsidy for solar installations from December 12 2012 – leaving its policy in tatters. Instead it will have to introduce a ‘plan B’, which means the cuts will be eligible from March 3 2012.

The judgement will be welcomed by Friends of the Earth and the two solar companies – Solarcentury and Homesun – which won the High Court ruling in December that Government plans to slash payments for solar photovoltaic installations completed after December 12 2011 – 11 days before an official consultation into the proposal had closed – were unlawful.
The three Lords of Justices of Appeal announced their reserved judgement this morning following a hearing 10 days ago. It ends weeks of uncertainty for the solar industry, which has been reeling ever since Government plans to cut the tariff were announced at the end of October.

Solar firms were given just six weeks notice to prepare for the cuts, leading to fears of massive job cuts and business closures in the sector. Friends of Earth said DECC’s action had put 29,000 jobs at risk.

‘Plan B’

DECC, which maintains the cuts are necessary to ensure the budget for the FiT is protected, has not ruled out taking further legal action. But it will now introduce its contingency plans announced last week.

January 25, 2012 11:55 am - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Solar feed-in tariff appeal judgement set for tomorrow

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has refused to rule out further legal action if it fails to win an appeal tomorrow over its plans to rush through deep cuts to solar subsidies, potentially prolonging uncertainty over the future of the feed-in tariff scheme.

Court of Appeal judges will tomorrow morning decide if DECC can appeal against a High Court ruling, which last month declared that plans to effectively halve feed-in tariff incentives for installations completed after 12 December 2011 were unlawful.

Climate minister Greg Barker has consistently argued that an accelerated timetable for cutting solar incentives was necessary to prevent the feed-in tariff scheme exceeding its budget, even if that meant changes to the scheme would come into effect before the official consultation on the proposed reforms closed on 23 December.

According to Friends of the Earth, one of the parties leading the legal action against the government, the court will tomorrow decide whether to allow DECC to appeal against the original court decision. If it does, it will also pass judgement on the appeal.

However, it remains unclear whether tomorrow’s ruling will provide the solar industry with the clarity it is seeking over the future of feed-in tariff levels.

Barker confirmed last week that if DECC wins the appeal it will reinstate the 12 December effective cut-off date for the higher incentive rate, subject to the results of the consultation. Solar projects registered for the feed-in tariff after 12 December would then receive the higher 43p per kWh rate for three months, before dropping to the lower 21p/kWh rate from April 2012 for the remaining 25-year payment period.

January 24, 2012 3:11 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Huhne addresses uncertainty over solar feed-in tariffs with March cut-off date

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne has today set out how the government will respond to the imminent court decision on when proposed cuts to feed-in tariff incentives can come into effect.

Following calls from the industry for the government to clarify the level of incentive available for current installations, Huhne this afternoon tabled a Written Ministerial Statement in parliament detailing the government’s plans.

“We continue to stand by our original proposal,” he said, referring to the plan to halve solar incentives for installations completed after December 12 last year. “However, I know that the uncertainty while we await the court’s decision is difficult for the industry.”

He added that to tackle this uncertainty and limit risks to the scheme’s budget in the event that the government’s appeal proves unsuccessful and the court orders a return to the previous feed-in tariff level of 43p/kWh, the government will lay draft licence modifications before parliament that would allow tariffs to be cut from April 1 for all installations completed on or after March 3.

January 19, 2012 4:14 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Solar industry prepares response to feed-in tariff crisis

Representatives of the solar industry are to meet in London later today to discuss how to respond to the government’s controversial proposal to slash the level of incentives available for solar installations, ahead of a crucial meeting with climate minister Greg Barker.

Barker said two weeks ago that he is keen to meet with the industry to discuss the proposed changes and, according to Whitehall insiders, the meeting has now been scheduled for this Thursday.

The meeting is likely to prove tense given the government’s suggestion that solar firms are guilty of exploiting excessive subsidies, and the industry’s anger at the pace of the proposed changes and the scale of cuts to incentives that many fear will result in bankruptcies and significant job losses.

The meeting is further complicated by the threat of legal action from green groups and solar firms over the government’s apparent willingness to impose the controversial changes ahead of the completion of the consultation.

November 11, 2011 2:24 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Solar industry ‘despondent’ as Barker rules out immediate delay to feed-in tariff cuts

Climate minister Greg Barker has today all but ruled out any delay to the proposed changes to solar feed-in tariff incentives due to come into effect from 12 December, arguing he cannot legally change the proposals until the official consultation exercise is complete.

Barker today met with representatives from the solar industry to discuss the government’s controversial plan to halve the level of incentives available to solar installations and bring the changes into effect from next month – a move that, according to the solar industry, will result in widespread job losses and possible bankruptcies.

BusinessGreen understands representatives from across the solar industry argued that while the scale of the proposed cuts would damage their growth prospects, it is the pace of the proposed changes that will cause the greatest damage to the sector.

One industry source said Barker faced a “lot of flak” over the government’s decision to effectively pre-empt the results of the consultation and propose that all installations completed after 12 December will only receive the current level of feed-in tariffs until April next year, at which point they will see the incentives they receive halved.

November 10, 2011 4:30 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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Invest in Solar PV before December 12th to receive maximum Feed-in-Tariff incentive payments for 25 years

Earlier today, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) announced drastic cuts in the Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) scheme which will have an enormous impact upon the Solar industry.

Initially, a budget of £867 million was put in place to provide Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) payments to those investing in renewable energy installations. Due to the healthy payback scheme, Solar PV investment saw a significant uptake with over 100,000 households receiving a payment of 43.3p/kWh for the electricity produced via their Solar investment.

The FiT scheme was introduced to encourage deployment of low carbon electricity generation, in particular by businesses, communities and individuals who are not traditionally engaged in the electricity market.

Up until 12th December 2011, those that invest in Solar PV installations will receive the Feed-in-Tariff payment for 25 years at the existing rate of 43.3p/kWh produced; an impressive rate which has historically been the catalyst for homeowners to make the investment in Solar PV.

Installing Solar before 12th December 2011 – a bright investment

October 31, 2011 4:14 pm - Posted by admin  | Comments ( 0 )
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