Uncertain Response To Government Move
Following the Government's defeat in the Court of Appeal,
which found that its attempt to reduce Feed-in Tariff (FiT) payment rates by
50% for domestic solar electricity (PV) systems was "unlawful", having
announced the cuts before the end of its own consultation period, energy
efficiency expert Enact believes the uncertainty surrounding FiT payments is
likely to remain for some time yet.
Enact, which has worked in the energy efficiency sector
across the UK since it was launched in 1996 believes the Court of Appeal
finding has left the solar industry "“ which had grown significantly prior to
the Government's decision to cut Feed in Tariff payments in December "“ shrouded
in uncertainty and extremely frustrated. A statement by the company following
the Court of Appeal finding says the result has seen yet more speculation as to
the future of FiT payment levels.
"Speculation is that the original tariff of 43.3p may be
reinstated until the new deadline of 3rd March 2012. However, should the
Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) win the right to appeal to the
Supreme Court which it has asked permission to do, and win, the 21p rate would
still apply from 12th December 2011.
"We join the rest of the industry in expressing our
frustration that the uncertainty remains. In our opinion the 21p rate is still
an attractive option and we would advise consumers to proceed with their
installs on this basis prior to 3rd March 2012. If DECC loses its next
application to appeal the lucky few who have had a system installed and
commissioned prior to 3rd March could benefit from the higher rate," said a
spokesman for the company.
"Currently it would seem that the uncertainty will
continue for some time yet," he added.
The High Court ruling that the Government had acted
"unlawfully" in proposing cuts to the FiT rate for domestic solar installations
after the 12th December 2011 on the grounds that the consultation period on the
scheme did not close until 23rd December was upheld saying that the secretary
of state, Chris Huhne, had no power under legislation to make retrospective
changes to the FiT.
The Feed-in Tariff was introduced in April 2010 by the
Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) and prior to the review stood
at its highest rate of 43.3p per kWh, paid for the generation of
electricity produced by domestic solar electricity systems of up to 4kWp size across
Britain. On the 31st October last year, DECC announced a review of the
FiT stating that the original rate was not "sustainable" and put forward a
proposal to reduce the subsidy to 21p per kW/h with an effective date of 12th
December 2011.
The earlier change to the scheme sparked anger within the
renewable energy industry with solar businesses and campaigners warning of the
potential loss of thousands of jobs in the sector which was then followed by
legal proceedings resulting in the High Court ruling that the premature change
to the tariffs before the end of the official consultation period was "legally
flawed".
A spokesperson for DECC has said "The Court of Appeal has
upheld the High Court ruling on FiTs albeit on different grounds. We disagree
and are seeking permission to appeal to the Supreme Court."
