Feed in tariffs ( FIT's )
In April 2010, the government launched the new Feed-in-tariffs (FIT's). Also known as the "clean energy cash back scheme". The legislation was introduced to encourage homeowners to generate clean electricity for themselves. The best way to achieve this is to contact Eco innovations to install either a intergrated tiled or panel solar system on the roof of your home. They then generate electricity whenever there is daylight, you don't need strong sunshine, which is handy for our current weather here in the UK.
You end up saving in a making money in three
separate ways:
You get paid for the electricity your solar panels generate, EVEN IF YOU USE IT!!!!
You get paid for any energy you make and don't use.
You save by not buying as much electricity.
If you invest in solar electricity now, you are guaranteed that income for the next 25 years. At the moment, for the next 2 years the government are offering an introductory offer that is a slightly higher rate of return.
Based on a standard installation of around 2.5 kWp. A typical three bedroom home can cut its electricity bills by around £130 per year with solar electricity. According to the BRESCU publication a typical three bedroom home uses 3290Kwh of electricity a year costing approximately £395 and rising from your current electricity supplier. A 2.5 kWp solar panel array produces around 1875 kWh per year. So if you times that by the current feed in tariff of 41.3 pence you should recieve £769 plus an additional 3 pence for any units you dont use and import back to the grid giving you further income. The total earning for this system could be around £900 a year! WOW!
The typical cost of installing solar panels with Eco innovations is around £12,000 (based on a 2.5kWp system) This could add value to your property and you may be able to add this too your mortgage.
We provide a high level of support throughout the installation of the solar panels to your home right through to helping you get set up for the feed in tariffs. take a look at our Photovoltaic section for more details.
Who will be eligible?
The scheme is open to all major forms of renewable electricity generation: wind, hydro, photovoltaic (PV) solar, and biomass combustion or anaerobic digestion. Schemes up to 5000kW (5MW) capacity are covered.
Projects are eligible if installed since July 2009. For generation installed before then, there will be a low generation tariff if they currently receive money through the Renewables Obligation (RO) scheme, but no Feed-in Tariff income for those who don't currently receive RO income.
Another important point is that to be eligible for FiT income, you have to use equipment and installers accredited under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme. This means that you cannot build your own equipment or install a system yourself, and that it is very important that your installer and equipment are accredited or else you lose out on a lot of money.
Domestic or community scale?
While the FiT scheme is attractive for domestic projects, such as a solar photovoltaic (PV) roof on a private home, community scale projects stand to benefit most. In the right location, wind or hydro projects of between 15 and 500 kW can provide excellent financial returns from FiTs.
With price tags between a few, 10,000s and 1,000,000 such projects are out of reach for most private individuals but too small for the big power companies. They are ideal for local groups to get together, raise the money and make sure that the benefits from local resources such as the wind or rivers flow directly into the local economy!