26/1/12 - The Government has turned itself inside out to sabotage the solar industry again but launching yet another appeal following yesterday's (Wednesday, 25 January) result when the High Court threw out the Government Appeal which ruled against the fast track cuts, effetively reinstating the original tariffs until 3rd March 2012. 

To avoid confusion, all calculations on your solar panel investment must be based on the revised Government Tariffs.   See our FIT page for details of current tariff levels. If the Government loses this next review then payments will be backdated for customers installing before 3rd March 2012.

The Government will appeal to the Supreme Court. It is felt this could be a further ploy to discourage uptake of solar panels and it is unclear why the Government will seek to draw this process out further. Subsequent appeals have less chance of success but serve as a useful governmental delaying tactic.

The Green Electrician says:
We feel it is correct that the Government action in cutting the feed-in tariff without proper consultation has been shown to be illegal. This fast track action damaged consumer confidence and solar businesses throughout the UK, and the Court announcement, we hoped, would stop them from acting with such careless disregard in the future, however this has proved not to be the case.

15/12/11 - Install solar panels before the end of March 2012 as April Fool's Day 2012 will mark the introduction of the Government's final hurdle for homeowners to install Solar Panels.

Current Government proposals suggest that homeowners will require a minimum Category C energy efficient rating on their properties to receive the full 21p feed-in tariff. At this level it will preclude over 80% of UK homes from getting the full FIT (a lower rate of 9p will be available) unless they spend thousands on upgrading their properties. Government figures suggest costs of £5-£7k will be required to reach a category C for modern properties, whilst older properties will require upgrades costing over £10k.

With the new cuts in the FIT, customers can still get 10% returns on their investment thanks to dramatic falls in the price of solar panels. So, if customers want to take charge of their electricity bills and generate clean energy for the future, now is the time to do it.

For more information on the latest information from DECC visit our blog or call 0845 643 2528.

7/12/12 - The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has announced today a £10m funding scheme for local community energy projects in addition to a £20m boost to the existing public sector energy efficiency loan scheme.

The new £10m Local Energy Assessment Fund, managed by a number of community networks and administered by the Energy Saving Trust, will run as a competition with the chance for 200 community organisations to get to grips with energy efficiency and renewable energy generation.  Organisations including parish councils, voluntary associations, development trusts and faith groups are all eligible to apply.

The maximum award will be £50,000 with two rounds of allocation.

Round One - opens 7/12/11 - closes 22/12/11

Round Two - closes 20/1/12

For further information visit the DECC website or for an application form contact the Energy Saving Trust's Green communities website

For more information on developing your energy scheme including Solar PV, Solar Thermal, energy efficiency and Wind Turbines please contact The Green Electrician's communities team on 01829 261 765 email info @thegreenelectrician.co.uk

21/11/11 - The Green Electrician's solar panel installations are regularly exceeding their estimated annual output by an average of 10% according to the latest figures.

Speaking to customers who installed in November 2010, annual readings were on average 10% above the predicted figures based on the Government's SAP 2010 statistics.

The best performing system was in Anglesey generating 20% more than the predicted output, whilst systems South and West of Birmingham outperformed systems to the East. Only one system did not outperform its annual prediction due to suspected shading issues.

"These figures show that a good installation regularly outperforms expectations. Not all panels are equal and we always tell our customers that investing in top quality products and using a good installer makes financial sense," comments director, Rupert Higgin.

"Taking regular readings is a good way to monitor whether systems require maintenance or system checks. Systems on the coast clearly benefit from clean air and increased sunlight."

The Green Electrician installs Suntech and Sharp panels as standard, two of the largest manufacturers in the World.

For further information call: 0845 643 2528

The Green Electrician will be joining other members of the Solar Industry in London on 22 November 2011, to lobby the Government to rethink its review of the Feed-in Tariff and imposing new energy efficient proposals. Both schemes will make it difficult for customers to install solar as a way to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels and reduce their electricity bills.

If you would like to lobby your member of parliament and support the solar industry please visit www.oursolarfuture.oorg.uk.

Howard Johns, Chairman of the Solar Trade Association said:

Four huge reasons why you need to join in the mass lobby of Parliament next week about changes to the Feed in Tariff

Now we have all got over the shock of the announcement of potential changes to the FIT some people in the industry are saying we should just get on and make the 21p work.

In many ways if that was what the plan really was I would agree, but having sat in the Ministerial Roundtable about the FIT changes I am left with more worry than before. The Minister made it quite clear “we have to reduce demand”, and there are a number of things in the announced changes that will make this happen.

On the timing – bringing in the changes to the FIT before they have finished consulting is possibly unlawful and certainly highly destructive. We as an industry really need to send a strong signal that we do want to cooperate with Government, but that we really will not stand for this level of bad treatment. It is totally unacceptable to have the goal posts changed in this way and we must make that clear to the decision makers or they will keep doing it. Reason one to join in the mass lobby.

CBI criticises solar subsidy cut

12/11/11 (BBC NEWS) - The UK's biggest business group has criticised the government's decision to halve the subsidies for household solar electricity by next month.

Under the scheme, people in Britain with solar panels are paid for the electricity they generate. The CBI said the decision to halve "feed-in tariffs" earlier than planned would force companies to cancel planned work, destroying projects and jobs. The government said the changes would ensure the scheme carried on in future.

The new arrangements will see the money households get for generating electricity fall from from 43p per kilowatt-hour to 21p. The tariff for surplus electricity exported to the national grid will remain at 3.1p per kilowatt-hour. CBI director general, Jonathan Cridland said the cut, which it was thought would end in April next year, was the latest in a string of own goals by the government. He said it already turned the carbon reduction commitment incentive scheme into "a pure revenue-raiser" and taxed North Sea oil and gas.

In a speech to the CBI East Midlands annual dinner he said: "Moving the goal posts doesn't just destroy projects and jobs, it creates a mood of uncertainty that puts off investors and they wonder what's coming next. "Some companies have invested heavily in solar photovoltaic systems and in the supply chains needed to install them. That commitment has been undermined by the feed-in tariff decision - and so industry trust and confidence in the government has evaporated. This bodes poorly for investment in future initiatives."

9/11/11 - Amidst the changes in the Feed-in Tariff, The Green Electrician is continuing to offer customers 10% returns on standard solar installations after the introduction of the new proposed tariff rates.

"A strong relationship with suppliers has enabled us to drop our prices to a level where 10% returns are still achievable. We do not want our customers to be disadvantaged by the Government's drastic cuts, solar has so much to offer particularly with energy prices soaring and we refuse to let the current Government action crush the solar revolution that has at last begun," said Claire Davies, Director.

Meanwhile The Green Electrician has joined the "Cut But Don't Kill" campaign to encourage the Government to support solar by withdrawing the fast track deadline, reducing the tariff cuts and amending the energy efficiency proposals. For more information on this campaign visit Our Solar Future.

31/10/11 - The Government has announced today a review of the Feed-in Tariff.

The new proprosed changes will be subject to an eight week consultation period. If implemented, they would introduce a new tariff for schemes up to 4kWp of 21p and reduced rates for systems up to 250kW.

Under the proposals, the new tariffs would apply to all new solar PV installations with an eligibility date on or after 12 December 2011. Such installations would receive the current tariff before moving to the lower tariff on 1 April 2012.  There will be no change for existing customers or systems installed and commissioned on or before 11 December 2011.

New proposed FiT:

Under 4kW (retrofit or newbuild) - 21p (down from 43.3p)
4-10kWp - 16.8p (down from 37.8p)
10-50kW - 15.2 (down from 32.9p)
50-100kW - 12.9p (down from 19p)
100-150kW - 12.9p (down from 19p)
150-250kW - 12.9p (down from 15p)
250kW - 5MW - 8.5p unchanged
standalone - 8.5p unchanged

The Government will announce further proposals regarding energy efficient requirements after 1 April 2012 and multi installation tariff rate for aggregated solar pv schemes.

For more information visit the DECC Government

26/9/11 - The Green Electrician has been invited to speak at the Solar Power UK Conference and Exhibition (26-28 October 2011) at the NEC, Birmingham.

David Young, Operations Director will give a presentation on the 27th October at 1500 on Solar PV Kits and the company's solar pv kit distribution work with housing associations and solar pv installers.

Presentation Overview:
Using Solar PV Kits has many benefits to the end user both from sole traders through to main contractors installing Solar PV on thousands of properties. Based on the experience of providing main contractors with 100 kits a week for a leading housing association, David Young, Operations Director for The Green Electrician will discuss how Solar PV Kits can help streamline installations, improve profitability, decrease wastage and improve efficiency.

David will also outline the advantages to new or smaller installation companies enabling them to benefit from design expertise and buying power of a Solar PV Kit distributor.

For more information on attending the conference visit Solar Power UK.

1/9/11 - Solar PV Specialist, The Green Electrician has won a Solar PV kit distribution contract with Stockport Homes Ltd worth over £4m. The contract will include the design and supply of 1,300 domestic Solar PV kits ready for installation.

“We are proud to be working with such a highly regarded Social Housing Landlord as Stockport,“  comments Rupert Higgin, Managing Director of The Green Electrician. “We have been involved in the development of the company’s Shine Project (Stockport Homes Investing in Natural Energy) for several months, providing advice and training based on our experience as installers. It was very exciting to see the first Solar PV system being commissioned in August.”

The company is currently preparing 40 kits a week from its North West base.  All system specifications have been pre-designed, including time saving measures to ensure the main contractors can work quickly and efficiently.  The complete kits are delivered direct to site to further streamline the process and minimise delays. Ongoing training and advice is also provided to ensure that all installation and surveying teams work efficiently within the design specifications.

“We are currently in discussion with other housing associations, councils and large contractors who are looking to benefit from our bespoke Solar PV kit distribution and training service.  We believe this is the best way to ensure large Solar PV contracts are delivered on time and on budget.”