A look at the latest developments in the world of solar energy and feed in tariffs.
Solar panels, or Solar Photovoltaic Panels to give them their proper name, have featured prominently in energy news recently. The reduction in the Feed-In-Tariff scheme (FIT) by which householders would be given money by electricity companies for the energy they generated has been greeted with dismay by solar energy manufacturers and installers.
The FIT scheme is an incentive for homeowners to install solar panels, as the panels earn them money even if the energy they generate is only used by themselves and their families. It is part of a government drive to broaden the electricity-generating sources in this country, especially those in the renewable sector.
Current and previously-installed systems receive 43p/kwh but the rate is to be cut to 21p/kwh so reducing the incentive, argue opponents of the change. But the government insists that the change is needed in order to remain within the budget of £867m for the energy scheme.
The government has also claimed that the cost of the scheme was becoming too much too bare for all other energy customers, some figures suggesting that bills would be increasing by as much as £80 a year to pay for the feed-in-tariff payments.
There have been wider arguments, going on largely unannounced, that call into question whether solar energy is the right source to concentrate such a scheme upon. These doubts centre upon the long-term viability of solar generation in northern latitudes with less dependable sunlight than in southern Europe for example. Because of this, solar’s place within the UK’s energy mix is in doubt.
But solar energy industry insiders have responded by claiming that up to 20,000 jobs are at risk from the sudden change in tariffs. They state that many of those employed by solar PV panels manufacturers and installers have moved from other construction related companies where employment has fallen in the last three years since the credit crunch. This means, they say, that these workers will not be able to re-locate to other jobs when demand for solar panels drops due to the tariff cut.
Commentators believe that the arguments over the sustainability of roof solar panels are just a part of the larger battle over Britain’s proposed shift in dependence from fossil fuels to renewable energy. This shift must be affordable for the consumer say the government. Solar panel advocates contend that it is lobbying from the large electricity companies that has prompted the policy about-face.
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