Government Feed-in Tariff plans to discriminate against pioneers ‘outrageous’

We have decided we will continue to pay our existing accredited small generators 15p a unit for all their electricity, well above the rate of 9p set by the government in its new Feed-in Tariff.

Under the government’s Feed-in Tariff, announced on Monday, the higher payment rates of up to 41.3p will only apply to new generators who installed their technology after 15th July 2009. Those pioneering generators in the UK who installed their technology before that date will only get 9p a unit under the government Feed-in Tariff.

As Good Energy do not want our home generators to be worse off under the new Feed-in Tariff we will continue to pay 15p a unit for the next year for accredited generators, and will be lobbying to get the legislation changed.

Juliet, Good Energy founder and CEO, said:  “It’s outrageous that the new Feed-in Tariff only pays the highest reward to new generators - Good Energy believes that the early adopters of microgen technology should also be recognised for their pioneering attitude and taking a lead. That’s why we’ve decided to continue paying our existing accredited HomeGen generators 15p a unit for all the electricity they generate and lobby to change the government’s mind.”

1 in 25 of our customers is also a renewable energy generator, and we don’t want to see these guys punished.

Accreditation window should be extended
Good Energy is also concerned that generators who have not had their systems accredited or who did not apply for accreditation before 15 July 2009, appear set to receive nothing for their electricity under the Feed-in Tariff. We will be asking for more clarity on this from DECC, and believe the window for obtaining accreditation should be extended until the Feed-in Tariff comes into force on 1st April 2010.

Juliet added: “Good Energy supports over 1000 ‘energy entrepreneurs’ and has more generators per customer than any other energy company in the UK. We have been running incentivised microgeneration schemes for more than five years so we are the obvious trusted partner for any microgenerator. We’re really proud of our pioneering community and will continue supporting them and campaigning on their behalf where it counts.”

What will Feed-in Tariff mean for homeowners?

• The Feed-in Tariff makes installing micro generation much more financially attractive -it should be possible to finance the costs with a bank loan, with the income from the Feed-in Tariff helping to cover your repayments.
• Payments will be inflation-linked for all generators and tax-free for domestic properties.
• Payments are guaranteed for 20 to 25 years, depending on the technology.
• For small generators, the Feed-in Tariff will be paid for their total generation, including the units they use themselves.
• For example - a household with a 2kW solar pv system
• Installation cost: £10,500 (subject to survey)
• Income (including savings made on electricity bill):£870 a year
• Return on Investment 8%, payback period 12 years.
• For example - a household with a 6kW wind turbine
• Installation cost: £24,000 (subject to survey)
• Income (including savings made on electricity bill): £2,700 a year
• Return on Investment 12%, payback period 9 years
• Households should not consider installing any micro-generation technology until they have first addressed the energy-efficiency of their property.
• Technology must be appropriate for the situation - for example solar pv works best on a south-facing roof, and there is no point installing a wind turbine unless you live in a windy place.

Good Energy can help with every stage of the process, from choosing the right technology to finding a grant to getting paid your Feed-in Tariff.