Feed-In Tariff Implementation

Who is eligible?
All PV installations under 5MW, private and commercial are eligible.  On the commercial side, the feed-in tariff will encourage photovoltaic (PV) installations among farmers, rural businesses, small and medium enterprises, where PV installations can be linked to other rural development programme and enterprise grants.  See our regional grants section for more information.  

Our installation was prior to 15 July 2009?
If you installed prior to the 15 July 2009 announcement you could be eligible for the lower Fit payment of 9p/unit, providing you are a registered microgenerator with the Renewable Obligation Scheme (RO) by 31 March 2010. To check that you are registered contact OFGEM or your electricity supplier. For more information from the DECC click here

We received a grant for our village hall, are we eligible?
For installations prior to 15/7/09 the Government has given community and non-profit buildings the choice of opting to receive ROCs or opting for the 9p FiT rate.  For installations after 15/7/09, the choice is to repay the entire Government grant and receiving the FIT or receive no further assistance.  For further information from the Department of Energy and Climate Change click here

How much will I get?
41.3p per unit for systems up to 4kWh (36.1p for new build)
36.1p for systems 4 - 10kWh
31.4p for systems 10kWh - 100kWh
29.3p for systems 100kWh - 5MW
Additional 3p bonus will be awarded for every unit of electricity exported.

How long will it last?
The Government has committed to pay the tariff for 25 years for photovoltaic installations.

What about current installations?
The Government has committed to paying the tariff to installations after July 2009. Prior to this date, installations will earn a lower rate of feed-in tariff @ 9p/unit of electricity generated.

Will the tariff change?
Once your tariff is agreed with the Government it will not decrease.  The introductory tariff will stay the same from 1/4/10 to 31/03/12.  It will then drop each year for future installations.  This is to encourage early uptake. The Government annouced it will be linked to inflation and tariffs will be inflated annually.

Why is the Government doing this?
The Government is way behind other European countries on commitments to reduce carbon emissions and to secure against future oil supplies. This is one way it can catch up. The UK currently produces 5.5% of electricity from renewables, this is expected to rise to 30% to meet the 15% 2020 target for all energy.

Feed-in tariffs have been introduced successfully in many countries around the world, including Spain and Germany.  It has encouraged huge growth in PV and created many jobs.

How will it be implemented?
Ofgem will administer the feed-in tariff. Suppliers will be responsible for paying the reward to their customers.

Is VAT payable?
VAT at 5% is payable on domestic installations.  New Builds are often VAT exempt, commercial buildings will pay standard VAT rates. 

Give me an example
This is a feed-in tariff example for a 2.22kWp installation of 12 panels:

Annual UK family household electricity bill (5,000kWh@0.14p) - £700
Cost of 2.22kWp system incl 5% VAT - £10291
Electricity savings from system output (assuming 75% used in house)
if used in house - £206
Feed-in tariff on all generated electricity est 1966kWh @41.3p - £812
Electricity exported back to the National Grid @3p - £29 

Total saving plus income/annum - £1047
Return on Investment - >10%
Payback Time - 10yrs

To read the latest announcement (1/2/10) from the Department of Energy and Climate Change on Cash Rewards for Low Carbon Electricity (FiT) click here...