The feed-in tariff: one year on

The UK feed-in tariff has generated almost 80MW of growth in one year.

The feed-in tariff pays out a certain sum per kilowatt hour, based on the size of the installation . The original rates, which can be seen in the chart below, brought about:

0.982MW (408) from April – May,
2.465MW (1009) from May – June,
3.574MW (1426) from June – July,
4.566MW (1753) from July – August,
8.971MW (3735) from August – September,
6.438MW (2486) from September – October,
6.759MW (2440) from October – November
and 6.560MW (2377) from November – December.

Energy Source	Scale	Feed-in tariff (pence/kWh)	Duration (years)
Solar PV	≤4 kW new	36.1	25
Solar PV	≤4 kW retrofit	41.3	25
Solar PV	>4-10kW	36.1	25
Solar PV	>10 - 100kW	31.4	25
Solar PV	>100kW - 5MW	29.3	25
Solar PV	Standalone	29.3	25

As can be seen in the figures above, these rates spurred on a huge amount of growth in the first couple of months, with a total of 45.011MW or 17,244 installations reached by the end of December 2010. This figure includes historic installations entitled to the reduced-rate 9p tariff only, which were transferred from the former Renewables Obligation, as well as full FiT-eligible installations connected between July 15, 2009 and the start of the scheme, but which appear on the Register as post-April 1. (These installations amount to approximately 11MW; however, it is difficult to be precise in this regard as Ofgem does not outline the separate categories.) Omitting these transferred installations, the total at the end of 2010 amounted to approximately 34.011MW.

By February 7, the UK Government had announced its intention to launch a feed-in tariff review. This was to work in two stages, the first of which would be fast-tracked for what Government defined ‘large-scale’ (but what we call anything over 50kW), and the second a Comprehensive Review, which would look at all levels of installation.

By March 18, the fast-track review was revealed. The Minister of State, Greg Barker said the fast-track aspect of the review would show “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.”

The document published outlined the following proposed new tariffs:
•    >50kW - ≤150kW: 19p/kWh
•    >150kW - ≤250kW: 15p/kWh
•    >250kW - ≤5MW: 8.5p/kWh

If the proposals go through, they will take effect from August 1, 2011. The industry has been given until May 6 to respond.

Although the reviews have caused a lot of uncertainty for the UK’s solar industry, they haven’t stopped figures reaching 77.864MW or 28,602 installations during the 12-month period to date. A striking 73.189MW of these were residential, a sector which is expected to continue on an upward trend considering the Government’s clear support.

The year’s figures, when split by country within the UK, show that the majority of the PV installations were in England (71.205MW), while Wales installed 3.411MW, and Scotland 2.506MW. Although these countries are doing their bit, it is expected that England will remain on top when it comes to solar power installations, as the south of the country has the highest solar irradiation levels.

As we move into this financial year, despite the looming review deadlines, the UK feed-in tariff (FiT) for solar installations will be adjusted slightly in industry’s favour to account for updated inflation figures. The new tariff will come into effect April 1 2011, and will be valid until March 31, 2012.

Scale	Previous feed-in tariff (pence/kWh)	Updated feed-in tariff (pence/kWh)
≤4 kW new	36.1	37.8
≤4 kW retrofit	41.3	43.3
>4-10kW	36.1	37.8
>10 - 100kW	31.4	32.9
>100kW - 5MW	29.3	30.7
Standalone	29.3	30.7

Installations are now expected to spike slightly while the tariffs levels are high, as industry will now be keeping a close eye out for more cuts to come during the comprehensive review. After that, it’s uncertain how the figures will be affected, as the feed-in tariff reviews, both fast-track and comprehensive, are expected to have a significant impact.

April 1, 2010 – April 1, 2011

UK
Overall: 77.864MW (28,602)
Domestic: 73.189MW (28032)
Commercial: 2.280MW (254)
Industrial: 0.321MW (31)
Community: 2.075MW (301)

 England
Overall: 71.205MW (26,486)
Domestic: 67.436MW (25,988)
Commercial: 1.655MW (212)
Industrial: 0.282MW (26)
Community: 1.832 (260)

Scotland
Overall: 2.506MW (822)
Domestic: 2.282MW (796)
Commercial: 0.158MW (15)
Industrial: 0.002MW (1)
Community: 0.064MW (10)

Wales
Overall: 3.411MW (1,165)
Domestic: 3.151MW (1,123)
Commercial: 0.127MW (20)
Industrial: 0.037MW (4)
Community: 0.095MW (18)

URBAN ENERGY

Our mission: “To provide and install, sustainable, world class, clean energy products with the highest level of service and care.

"Urban Energy is an innovative organisation specialising in the financing, design and installation of economic and environmentally sound solar powered energy systems for commercial property (private and public) and domestic dwellings. Our expertise in the field of Government incentive schemes and solar power products will provide individuals and organisations with an excellent opportunity to overcome capital cost barriers, save money on energy bills, increase profit margins, increase the value of their property and reduce their carbon footprint.

Urban Energy employ the very best engineers in this field, all of which are fully qualified, MCS certified and Government approved to carry out this task, complying with strict guidelines and are members of the Solar Trade Association.

For further information about Urban Energy products and services:
Call: 0800 232 1624

Email: info@urbanenergy.org.uk
Website: http://www.urbanenergy.org.uk/

Salford University's Energy House

Do we need all of our mains sockets on 240 volts? Can warmth be psychologically affected by the colour of wall paint, and are UPVc windows better than wood?

These are the types of questions Salford University is aiming to answer as it looks to trial new energy efficient technologies in a terrace house built inside a laboratory.

The university has built a 1920s Victorian-style two-up, two-down – thought to represent around 20% of the UK’s housing stock – to test new energy efficient technologies and the behavior of occupants.

The Energy House is a response to the UK’s retrofit challenge. According to statistics released by Communities and Local Government, around 70% of the country's residential property will still be inhabited in 2050 and 91% of all UK homes would benefit substantially from improvements in energy efficiency. Improved insulation and boiler upgrades alone could see heating emissions reduced by 22%.

Despite social housing being seen as a key area to ramp up retrofit activity, the university recently revealed that 50% of Registered Housing Providers do not yet have a retrofit plan.

However, the policy tide is turning, with the Government wanting to leap from the bottom to the top of the European efficiency league. Energy minister Greg Barker, who attended the two-day conference, says that local authorities and housing associations will play a key part in its flagship Green Deal, which will allow tenants and homeowners to pay for energy-efficient improvements through the savings on their energy bills.

Temperature control

Inside the laboratory the university can even change the weather – wind, rain, snow, not the sun, which it will use UV lights to simulate – with temperatures in the environmental chamber able to drop to as low as -6 degrees.

Rain and wind can also hit the house at different speeds, as researchers say that brick’s performance is affected by different conditions. Solar panels will also be fitted on to the tiled roof.

Inspecting the house at its official unveiling at the end of January at the University of Salford Retrofit conference is quite something. All the materials – from the brick to the slate have been reclaimed – except the timbers inside.

Lime mortar has been used to set the familiar red brick, the doors – front and back – don’t shut properly and have gaps exposing drafts, as do the rickety single-glazed sash windows. There are no curtains and the house has no insulation.

“In short,” says energy hub manager Steve Waterworth, “the house is leaking energy.

“We wanted to construct the house as it would have been then and leave it in its rawest form,” he says, “so we can see how it behaves and where the energy goes. We’ll be monitoring temperature, pressure, air flow and humidity and will be producing 3D image maps of each room to see where everything is going.”

The house represents the stock that is the hardest to treat – i.e. no cavity walls with which to pack with insulation.

The university has even built half a house next door so they can monitor the heat output through the party wall. Researchers want to know if tenants have got their heating on high whether they are heating the living room next door.

As well as trialing the relationship between different products and controls within and outside the house, such as double glazed windows, internal/external cladding and insulation, a key part of the analysis and modeling will be the behavior of occupants.

Psychologists will work alongside physicists to study how people use energy. “Hands up who recycled something this week,” asks Mr Waterworth, who turns to delegates on the guided tour? A spate of hands shoot up behind me. “Who’s saved energy this week?” Everybody looks at each with no hands raised. And here in lies one of the challenges. “Ten years ago nobody recycled,” says Waterworth. Now, everybody does. How can we make that work for reducing energy in the home?”

He adds psychologists will also evaluate behaviour in the home. “How would you feel looking at a thermometer giving a warm reading in a cold room? Warm or cold,” asks Mr Waterworth? He says some of the products being trialled include taps that reduce the water pressure, a Dulux reflective paint on the walls, allowing the wattage of light bulbs in the room to be reduced, as light would reflect off the paint. Other products include environmental controls supplier Dyer’s ‘Solis’ system, which controls windows wirelessly using solar power.

The research team intends to trial a number of different types of occupants in the house for around 12 hours at a time, from families to students, single occupants to couples.

Currently, there is a gas boiler in the house but the heating can and will change, depending on what the team wishes to test. Water, electricity and gas will all be monitored as researchers believe that a lot of heat is being lost in the home through hot water.

Green Deal

After a tour of the house Energy minister Greg Barker and I sit in the living room of the terrace to discuss the role of housing associations and tenants in the green deal.

The minister said the “sky is the limit” for housing associations and local authorities to become Green Deal providers themselves – accessing private finance and carrying out the work for tenants – or to form partnerships with utility companies to deliver a roll out.

“Some could not only retrofit their own stock but could provide it to the private rented sector,” he told 24housing magazine. “Housing associations have already taken good steps in bringing their stock up to a decent standard, but we need to get them to go further. The Green Deal will provide them with the finance to do that.”

He also alleviated concerns by those who have pointed out that social tenants often fall out of the Green Deal’s golden rule, i.e. the savings created by the energy efficiency measures have to be greater than the cost of paying for the retrofit over 25 years. This is because such tenants could be classed as fuel poor and won’t be using much energy in the first place.

Mr Barker said: “There will be many homes that won’t be covered by a ‘Pay as you Save model’ e.g. those that are fuel poor, because you can’t make savings on your energy bill if you’re not actually using much in the first place. We recognise that, so in addition to the Green Deal, there will also be an ongoing new energy obligation on utility companies which we believe will be worth well in excess of £1bn per annum and will be rolled out over a decade.”

He also indicated that the Government’s Renewable Heat Incentive, which was crucially spared the axe in last year’s spending review, could be used alongside the Green Deal to improve a home’s energy efficiency.

He said: “We are looking at ways when someone has had a Green Deal review of their home, it lists the measures they are able to do. It should also include the opportunities for renewable heat and microgeneration. What we don't want is to put microgeneration or renewable heat technologies into leaky homes. Making your home heat tight first really ought to be the prerequisite before you then go on to the more microgeneration.”

The entire facility at Salford has been geared up to allow the university to knock down the terrace and start again by building another style of property for testing. But for the next three years, we can expect the publication of vital research, says Professor Martin Hall, the university’s vice chancellor. “This project is exciting because retrofitting old properties to make them as carbon-efficient as possible will require detailed and robust research,” he says.

“If there is to be a step change in the UK to achieve our carbon emission reduction targets, it is essential decision-makers have sound evidence to ensure products are tested before being tried out in real homes.”

URBAN ENERGY

Our mission: “To provide and install, sustainable, world class, clean energy products with the highest level of service and care.

"Urban Energy is an innovative organisation specialising in the financing, design and installation of economic and environmentally sound solar powered energy systems for commercial property (private and public) and domestic dwellings. Our expertise in the field of Government incentive schemes and solar power products will provide individuals and organisations with an excellent opportunity to overcome capital cost barriers, save money on energy bills, increase profit margins, increase the value of their property and reduce their carbon footprint.

Urban Energy employ the very best engineers in this field, all of which are fully qualified, MCS certified and Government approved to carry out this task, complying with strict guidelines and are members of the Solar Trade Association.

For further information about Urban Energy products and services:
Call: 0800 232 1624
Email: info@urbanenergy.org.uk
Website: http://www.urbanenergy.org.uk/

Experts predict dazzling solar future for UK

Solar PV experts predict the UK will follow in Europe's footsteps and experience significant market growth following the introduction of the new feed-in tariffs (FiTs). According to a report published in May 2010 by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association, Germany continues to dominate the European PV market with 68% market share, followed by Italy and the Czech Republic. Belgium and France both showed steady growth throughout 2009 whilst Spain's market appeared to slow because of the recession.

Trailing at the bottom of the league table is the UK with installations totalling just 22 MW in 2009. However, in April, the UK Government introduced the new FiTs to encourage households and businesses to install renewable energy systems such as solar PV. With this solid foundation, the UK solar PV market looks set for substantial growth.

Here is a sample of what the experts are saying:

"The UK solar revolution is underway. Since the Government announced the financial incentives we have seen very strong interest in PV products from homeowners and commercial operators. The feed-in tariff is a market-building mechanism. It is designed to create sufficient demand for PV systems to trigger two benefits: first, falling cost and price of solar electricity, and second, growth of a proper UK-based solar PV industry. With the right supply chain in place, I believe that we can achieve grid parity - where solar power in homes will cost no more than conventional electricity - as soon as 2013."

"The Carbon Reduction Commitments (CRC) will further drive the PV market. It will take some time before both the attractive feed-in tariff and the CRC will impact on the UK, but in one to two years the market will really take off. Bigger companies, housing associations and financial institutions will then discover the possible financial benefits. In this first stage of the market, the residential segment will dominate the UK PV market demand. Private households pay more for their electricity, so they can save more by installing PV.

"It took Germany, Spain and Italy three years after the start of their feed-in tariff to reach a substantial market scale. No doubt a similar market development will occur in the UK."

"Solar PV has huge potential and is the most viable source of renewable energy that is available in the UK, and the feed-in tariffs will have a positive effect, helping to drive PV adoption.

"The interest generated by the FiTs in the UK is exceeding all expectations. The unique FiT, with the Generation Tariff, kept separate to the use or export of the electricity, has resulted in some very innovative funding arrangements. The banks, finance institutions and pension funds are actively supporting a large number of projects, which include complete housing estates, large roofs and ground-mounted systems, all at the 5 MWp end of the scale. At last, a very exciting time for solar power in the UK."

"From our experience in the Belgian and Dutch solar energy markets, we believe that national governments have the key to give a great value to growth in public awareness and to economic growth of the solar market. Other European countries have given well-organised examples of a concrete policy of feed-in tariffs. The new perspectives in the UK undoubtedly will be successful if all players can attend this new challenge: spreading knowledge, supplying the necessary systems, and increasing employment in installation capacity."

Reference: energyportal.eu

URBAN ENERGY

Our mission: “To provide and install, sustainable, world class, clean energy products with the highest level of service and care."

Urban Energy is an innovative organisation specialising in the financing, design and installation of economic and environmentally sound solar powered energy systems for commercial property (private and public) and domestic dwellings. Our expertise in the field of Government sponsored funding programmes and solar power products will provide individuals and organisations with an excellent opportunity to overcome capital cost barriers, save money on energy bills, increase profit margins, increase the value of their property and reduce their carbon footprint.

Urban Energy employ the very best engineers in this field, all of which are fully qualified, MCS certified and Government approved to carry out this task, complying with strict guidelines and are members of the Solar Trade Association.

For further information about Urban Energy products and services:
Call: 0800 232 1624
Email: info@urbanenergy.org.uk
Website: http://www.urbanenergy.org.uk/