25 May 2012

DECC confirms new FIT rates come into effect on August 1

24.05.2012: The UK Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has confirmed that it will cut feed-in-tariff (FIT) rates for photovoltaic (PV) installations up to 4 kW in size starting on August 1, 2012. The DECC said the cuts were intentionally delayed by one month to allow the solar market to recover following a sharp drop in new installations in April. The standard rate for systems up to 4 kW will be reduced by about 25% in August from 21p to 16p per kWh. The rate will be further reduced by up to 28% every three months thereafter depending on the amount of capacity installed in the months leading up to the cuts. The DECC expects average rate reductions to be around 3.5%, and it notes that reductions could be delayed by two quarters at a time if uptake is low. The DECC also increased the export tariff from 3.2p to 4.5p per kWh to better reflect the real value of electricity exported to the grid, and it reduced the lifetime of new FIT contracts from 25 to 20 years. FIT rates for larger installations will also be reduced on August 1, however, the DECC notes that these cuts will generally be lower than those proposed in February. The DECC will publish additional information on the FIT scheme shortly. The DECC wants the UK FIT scheme to deliver 22 GW of installed PV capacity by 2020; however, it now believes this goal is only possible if the solar industry can bring down costs quickly. … Source: Department of Energy and Climate Change; Summary: PHOTON http://www.decc.gov.uk http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/news/pn12_066/pn12_066.aspx The complete press release can be viewed in PHOTON's archive using the following link: http://www.photon-international.com/newsletter/document/65580.pdf

 

 

18 May 2012

IFeed in tariff rates of 21p for residential installations is set to be extended past the 30th June expected deadline. This gives you more time to find the best deal and product for you.

The new date for reductions is expected to be around the end of july.

 

11 July 2011!

Information from a man who has obvoiusly done the research by owning the first UK Solar Farm.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-14073447

 

28 February 2011!

Watchdogs are warning people to treat free solar panel deals with caution, although they could cut your bills.

Isis became the latest provider to offer free solar panels to eligible households in England and Wales last week.

The free panels are worth more than £12,000 and could save customers up to £120 a year on their bills.

However watchdog Consumer Focus and the Centre for Sustainable Energy have warned customers to investigate the details of such offers.

Liz Laine, energy expert at Consumer Focus, said: “Free solar panels could cut consumers electricity bills and allow them to produce green energy at no cost, but customers need to go into these deals with their eyes open.

“These long-term contracts need to be considered carefully. Asking the right questions and getting legal advice could help customers avoid the potential pitfalls of these schemes.”

The deal is part of a government scheme whereby it has promised to pay any solar-powered household around £800 a year for the solar energy it produces for the next 25 years.

Customers can either install the solar panel themselves - costing £12,000 - and receive the money directly from the government.

Alternatively, a company like Isis will install the panels for free and then it will receive the government money.

To qualify for the Isis scheme, you need to have a south-facing roof not shaded, which must be at least 24 square metres.

One of the catches is that customers must keep the panels on for 25 years and let Isis come and maintain them over that time.

There is also no option to buy the company out - however after the 25 years the homeowner can choose to keep the panels or get rid of them.

Also if the customer wants to sell the home within the 25 year period then the new owner will have to take on the arrangement.

07 February 2011
DECC Press Notice: 2011/010

• Comprehensive review of Feed in Tariffs starts now to provide investment certainty
• Fast-track consideration to be launched into large scale solar installations and farm-scale Anaerobic Digestion plants

Energy Secretary Chris Huhne has today launched a comprehensive review of the Feed in Tariffs (FITs) scheme following growing evidence that large scale solar farms could soak up money intended to help homes, communities and small businesses generate their own electricity.

Since FITs began last year it has been a huge success at stimulating green growth, driving innovation, creating jobs and cutting carbon.

More than 21,000 installations have been registered to date. The vast majority of these are domestic installations, including solar panels, wind turbines and microhydro plants.

Last year’s Spending Review committed government to save 10% of the costs of FITs in 2014-15 through a review due to start in 2012 or earlier if uptake exceeded Government expectations. Because of the risk of an increasing number of large scale solar farms which could push FITs costs off track, and the need to give industry added certainty to invest, the coalition is today announcing a comprehensive review into the scheme. We also hope to publish next month measures to support renewable heat within the budget agreed at Spending Review.

Chris Huhne said:

“The renewables industry is a vital piece in the green growth jigsaw and this review will provide long term certainty while making sure homes, communities and small firms are encouraged to produce their own green electricity.

“Large scale solar installations weren’t anticipated under the FITs scheme we inherited and I’m concerned this could mean that money meant for people who want to produce their own green electricity has the potential to be directed towards large scale commercial solar projects.”

The comprehensive FITs review will:

• Assess all aspects of the scheme including tariff levels, administration and eligibility of technologies
• Be completed by the end of the year, with tariffs remaining unchanged until April 2012 (unless the review reveals a need for greater urgency)
• Fast track consideration of large scale solar projects (over 50kW) with a view to making any resulting changes to tariffs as soon as practical, subject to consultation and Parliamentary scrutiny as required by the Energy Act 2008.

Alongside the fast track review of large scale solar PV, a short study in to the uptake of FITs for farm based Anaerobic Digestion (AD) plants will also take place. Only two such projects have been accredited so far and by this point at least six were expected. The tariff rates will be examined to see if they are enough to make farm based AD worthwhile.

The Government will not act retrospectively and any changes to generation tariffs implemented as a result of the review will only affect new entrants into the FITs scheme. Installations which are already accredited for FITs at the time will not be affected.

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Notes for editors:

1. Broad terms of reference for the review are available from the First review of Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs) web page.
2. According to Ofgem, the total installations to date (to 26th January 2011) under the FITs scheme are as follows:

• Anaerobic digestion – 2
• Hydro – 178
• Micro CHP – 36
• PV – 19854
• Wind – 1132

The total installations have a combined capacity of 76.66MW.