Good Energy’s data shows FIT has helped tackle fuel poverty and improve energy efficiency

CHIPPENHAM, 31 October 2011 – Good Energy, the UK’s only 100% renewable electricity supplier, with around 6,000 Feed-in Tariff customers, responds to the Government Feed-in Tariff Review Consultation published today.

Key headlines from the consultation: 

• Payments for solar PV are to be reduced across the board. For domestic-size schemes payments are being reduced from up to 43.3p per unit to 21p for sites of 4kW or below
• Installations completed after the consultation ends on 12^th December 2011 will receive the new lower rate from 1^st April 2012
• A new tariff  rate is proposed for FIT recipients getting payments from more than one site (such as social housing schemes)
• Installations completed after 1^st April 2012 will require an Energy Performance rating of C or above to be eligible for the FIT payments.

Juliet Davenport, Good Energy’s founder and CEO says: “We’re disappointed to see the Feed-in Tariff cut significantly. The real story here seems to be that due to pressure from George Osborne and the Treasury, DECC has had to cut the one scheme that gives households control over their rising energy bills.

“We’re concerned that these changes show that the Treasury doesn’t have a real grip on the economics of the energy market, and in particular the value of energy generated in the UK compared with the energy we have to import from abroad. Make no mistake – as a result of these cuts, fewer people will become microgenerators and the prospect of a stable energy future for Britain looks ever more distant.” 

Good Energy has just published its snapshot of renewable electricity microgeneration in the UK, which demonstrates the huge success of the Feed-in Tariff so far and shows how the UK’s community of small energy generators is growing and evolving. Thousands are already taking control of their energy supply, insulating themselves against price hikes and rising fuel poverty. The Good Energy FIT Report findings include: 

• Renewable electricity generation is no longer limited to affluent regions but has become widespread; hotspots include Stockport, Reading and Exeter
• Feed-in Tariff installations have risen rapidly in the social housing sector
• Microgenerators have changed the way they use energy and have reduced their consumption

Juliet Davenport added: “The result of these changes will be a mad scramble to get solar pv installed in the next few weeks – and the groups most likely to lose out as a result will be community schemes and social housing projects, because they won’t have the flexibility to respond at such short notice. That means some of Britain’s poorest households will miss out as a result of these changes. Good Energy’s data demonstrates how the FIT has been a fantastic vehicle for social investment, helping alleviate fuel poverty, and encouraging energy efficiency.”

Good Energy believes that strong uptake of the Feed-in Tariff to date represents a welcome shift towards a stable UK energy market that reduces its reliance on imported energy.

Juliet Davenport continues: “Schemes like the Feed-in Tariff make renewable electricity accessible to a wider market. Not only is it a great way for people to reduce their carbon footprint, but it should also make sound financial sense. We need even more people to embrace microgeneration if we are to change the way the UK generates and uses energy. Communities that are taking control of their energy needs deserve our full support. They deserve the government’s support. We need to follow in their footsteps if we are to change our energy future for the better.”