UK Government Challenged Over FiT Review

A group of solar companies has filed a claim in the High Court for a Judicial Review against the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Chris Huhne, over the review of the feed in tariff scheme, including the fast track review of the feed in tariff for larger scale solar developments, which was launched on 7 February, 2011.

The organisations and individuals behind the legal challenge are Alectron Investments Ltd, Element Power Ltd, Juwi Renewable Energies Ltd, Lark Energy Limited, Low Carbon Solar UK Ltd, MO3 Power Ltd, Donald Anderson, Guy Anderson, Kate Kenyon and The Green Company (Europe) Ltd.

The application to the Court for a judicial review of the decision to undertake the review includes the following arguments:

• Previous indications by the Department of Energy and Climate Change set clear expectations that a first review of the FITs scheme would take place in 2012 with any resultant changes being implemented in April 2013. DECC indicated in November 2011 that an earlier review might take place, but this was to be carried out over a 12 month period with any changes to tariffs implemented from 2012 onwards.

• No announcement on the trigger for an early review was ever made by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. In order to protect investor confidence the proper course for the Secretary of State was the one he originally stated would be followed, namely setting a clear, and reasoned, trigger for the conduct of an early review. There could then have been a proper assessment of whether the trigger set had been met by deployment.

• The fast-track review is predicated on a concern about excessive deployment of so-called "large scale". The companies involved in the legal challenge are not aware of any current evidence of "excessive deployment" of this technology. The review is therefore based on a perceived risk of excessive deployment, and belated recognition that the original projections for likely numbers of developments may have been flawed.

• Targeting ground mounted, grid connected solar PV projects at the larger end of the tariff bands, which are the most cost effective and efficient of the range of possible applications of the technology, is irrational in the context of promoting investment in renewable energy to meet the government's renewable energy targets whilst balancing the cost to the consumer.

On behalf of the group filing the claim, Mark Shorrock, CEO of Low Carbon Solar UK, said: “Further to communicating our concerns through various meetings and letters we now feel that the only course of action left to us as a group is to seek a judicial review. We hope the Secretary of State of Energy and Climate Change will abandon this fast track review and work with us to find a more appropriate solution for the future of the Feed in Tariff. In pulling back on a commitment to support solar energy, the Government will cause the abandonment of hundreds of community scale schemes. The cost of not getting this right now, aside from the Government meeting its climate change targets, include the creation of new jobs, a diversified income for farmers and landowners, reduced energy costs for businesses and the provision of more secure and reliable energy for the UK.“