Plans were announced today (9 February) by the Government to improve the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) scheme and make it more predictable. Transparency, longevity and certainty are key to the new, improved system, the Government says.
The reforms aim to provide greater confidence to consumers and industry investing in renewable technologies such as solar power, anaerobic digestion, micro-CHP, wind and hydro power.

A surge in solar PV installations at the end of last year, due to a 45% reduction in estimated installation costs since 2009, has put huge strain on the FITs budget.

Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker, said: 'Instead of a scheme for the few the new improved scheme will deliver for the many. Our new plans will see almost two and a half times more installations than originally projected by 2015 which is good news for the sustainable growth of the industry.'

He continued: 'We are proposing a more predictable and transparent scheme as the costs of technologies fall, ensuring a long term, predictable rate of return that will closely track changes in prices and deployment.'

A tariff of 21p/kWh will take effect from 1 April this year for domestic-sized solar panels with an eligibility date on or after 3 March. Other tariff reductions apply for larger installations.

Properties installing solar panels on or after 1 April will be required to produce an Energy Performance Certificate rating of 'D' or above to qualify for a full FIT.

From 1 April, new 'multi-installation' tariff rates set at 80% of the standard tariffs will be introduced for solar PV installations where a single individual or organisation is already receiving FITs for other solar PV installations. This reflects the lower costs of these installations as they benefit from economies of scale, the Government says. The threshold will be set at more than 25 installations. However, DECC is considering a proposal that social housing, community projects and distributed energy schemes should be exempt from the multi-installation tariff rates.

In addition, the tariff for micro-CHP installations will be increased to acknowledge the benefits of the technology and encourage its development.

For more information www.decc.gov.uk