The UK Government has made a U-turn on its decision to end the solar “export tariff”, confirming that households which install solar panels in the future will be paid for excess power they generate and send to the grid. Officials from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) last month said the Government would be ending the “export tariff” for solar panels under the feed-in tariff (FiT) scheme, which is closing in April. The decision, which meant that people installing solar panels on their estate after April 2019 would not have been paid for sending excess power to the grid, sparked outrage from homeowners, green campaign groups and renewable industry bodies alike. However, the UK Government has today (8 January) overturned its decision, promising to replace the FiT scheme with an updated framework. Under the new scheme, which will be called the smart export guarantee (SEG) programme, households and businesses installing new solar panels will be guaranteed compensation for any power provided to the grid. Solar-generated power put onto the grid through the scheme will be bid for by electricity suppliers – a clause BEIS claims will give exporters the best market price and greater control on how their power is brought and sold.
Edie 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Britain’s biggest energy suppliers will soon be buying their renewable electricity from a new fleet of upstart power generators: their own customers. Under proposals for a new government scheme, households with solar panels will be able to sell their renewable electricity back to their energy suppliers at the going market rate. Officials believe the scheme could unlock a fresh area of competition among energy suppliers as homes begin to adopt “smart” energy technologies such as battery storage and electric vehicles. The new scheme could boost the efforts of suppliers to help use energy more efficiently and reduce overall costs. The Solar Trade Association gave a cautious welcome to the plans, but warned the scheme will need to determine a fair way to determine the market price. “The devil really is in the detail here,” said the association’s boss, Chris Hewett. “So we very much hope that government will listen very carefully to the responses to this consultation.” The plan could replace a scrapped subsidy scheme due to end in the Spring.
Telegraph 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Households with solar panels are to get a guaranteed payment for excess electricity they export to the grid – but there will be a hiatus when people are expected to give it away for free. Energy minister Claire Perry said on Tuesday she would legislate for a new market that will make energy firms compete to offer solar homes the best price for any unused energy they export. The marketplace would replace a scheme that pays households about 5p for each unit of solar electricity they export, which is paid for by all energy bill-payers but will close for new applicants on 31 March.
Guardian 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Independent 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Mirror 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Industry offers cautious welcome as UK government guarantees export payments after all. Ms Perry stayed true to her word when she stated publicly that people should not be expected to export excess electricity back to the grid without reward. Even more impressively, the proposed new payments scheme – which itself is out for consultation until March 5 – has won measured approval from U.K. solar and renewables bodies.
PV Magazine 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Business Green 8th Jan 2019 read more »
Proposals to protect consumers whilst guaranteeing payments for households with solar by unlocking smarter energy system.
BEIS 8th Jan 2019 read more »
