Newsletter Signup
Follow Us:
The Link Between The Green Deal Energy Efficiency And Solar Panel FIT Rates
Amid much publicity, the British government launched the Feed-In Tariff (FIT) Scheme in April 2010 in an attempt to encourage UK homeowners to install renewable energy systems into their properties. The Feed-In Tariff paid the owners of these systems for the electricity they produced, with solar panel systems proving the most popular qualifying installation.
Indeed, it was estimated that in the course of a year a solar panel owner with an average domestic system could be paid over £1,000 in tax free tariffs. However, controversy reigned when the government proposed to cut the tariffs by over 50%. A legal battle ensued but the government won out and the tariffs were slashed by this intended amount for all new installations as of March 2012.
The Green Deal 2012
The energy industry in the UK feared the worst after the cut in FIT rates but was encouraged by the government’s new environmental proposal. The Green Deal, due to be launched in the autumn of 2012, will offer UK homeowner loans of up to £10,000 to install energy saving devices into their properties. Qualifying devices include double glazed windows and loft insulation.
The loan repayments will be added to the property’s utility bill and as the Green Deal has a ‘Golden Rule’ which states that repayments cannot exceed the expected savings made by the device, this means homeowners should not see a rise in their outgoings whilst the loan is being paid off. The loan also stays with the property so if a house is sold the new occupier will take up the repayments.
FIT and The Green Deal
In late 2011, whilst plans for The Green Deal where still being finalised, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) stated that properties hoping to receive FIT rates from solar power would have to have Green Deal measures in place. In effect, a home would have to have a high energy efficiency rating before qualifying for any FIT payments. The government had wanted properties receiving FIT payments to be classed as C in the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).
This certificate, banded from A to G, details the energy efficiency of a property with A being the best and G the worst.
The government, however, dropped plans to link Green Deal efficiency to FIT rates and instead moved to cut the FIT rates. As previously mentioned, the proposed cuts were substantial and were met with widespread criticism in the energy industry.
Solar Panels are Part of the Green Deal
Currently photovoltaic (PV) solar panels will qualify for the Green Deal and whilst some in the solar energy industry believe this will help the uptake of solar panels, others are sceptical. They argue that PV solar panels will not adhere to the Golden Rule of the Green Deal as they will not save enough money to negate the cost of the repayments. As a result, there is much uncertainty about the future of solar panels inclusion in The Green Deal.
The Future of the FIT and The Green Deal
The future is still not clear mainly because The Green Deal has yet to be launched. At the moment it appears there will be no link between Green Deal energy efficiency and Feed-In Tariff rates and the two schemes will co-exit independently. Only time will tell if FIT can survive the tariff cut or whether people will be deterred by the fact systems installed pre-2012 will receive over double the amount of new installations.
Similarly, there is no way of telling how many people will take up the government’s Green Deal. Indeed, the future of the government’s two environmental schemes appears uncertain at best.
Ian Wright wants to help the UK go Green and writes for both GreenDeal.co.uk and The Eco Experts. While you can’t take advantage of the Green Deal just yet, you can still get solar panels for your home or work. To find out how much they will cost The Eco Experts provides solar panel quotes for all types of installations.
Add Comment: