Info
Info
News Article

Solar In The UK: Is There A Reason To Panic?

News
Neil Budd, Director of Renewable Energy, Shakespeare Martineau
 

On 22 July 2015, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) issued a  consultation paper Consultation on changes to financial support for solar PV, proposing to end eligibility for Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) for projects below 5 MW, subject to retention of ROC eligibility for projects which fulfil specified "grace period" criteria.  This proposal had been feared although industry hoped that eligibility for these smaller projects would be maintained for the final year of ROCs.

Some developers are still working on projects above 5 MW with a view to participating in the CfD auction scheduled for the autumn but it is increasingly unclear whether this will go ahead.

A FiT review is imminent and likely to bring further bad news for both ground-mounted projects and rooftop projects. It is clear that FiTs are too high and are providing internal rates of return well above DECC's target rate of 5-8 percent.

So is there a reason to panic? The answer must be no. The industry has been hit by setbacks before and has overcome them and now the holy grail of grid parity is tantalisingly close. Reductions in the cost of modules and other equipment over the next few years are widely predicted and technology is increasing in efficiency. Although the government has made clear its hostility to subsidies for solar, tax concessions such as enhanced capital allowances would help.  Bringing about reductions in other costs such as grid costs and planning fees are more difficult. Developer fees will obviously come down and landowners will have to get used to lower rents than have been the case. 

It is difficult to say when grid parity for large-scale solar in the UK is likely to happen, particularly if wholesale energy prices maintain a downward trend, but most commentators think that it is likely to be by 2020 and possibly earlier than that. Until then, unless the government pushes forwards with CfDs and provides a generous budget, it is probably going to be the case that the industry will remain static for a few years but then there is no reason (subject to planning and grid constraints) why solar should not have a very positive future in the UK.        

NextEnergy Capital Acquires Its First Asset In Portugal 17.4MWp Solar PV Project
TLT Advises Santander On 30MW Flagship Battery Storage Project
UK'S Largest Battery Ready To Balance The Grid
SOLARWATT Links With Easy Roof To Provide Building-integrated PV For Better-looking Buildings And Smart EV Charging
Ingenious Invests In Electric Vehicle Charging Firm
Analysis Of UK Commercial Roof Space Shows Solar PV Film Can Achieve Net Zero Without Greenfield Sites
Sunstore Solar Launches WattGrid, A New Range Of Turnkey Off-grid Power Systems
Going Green In Lancashire – Hundreds Of Houses Installed With Solar Panels In Ground-breaking Project
The Smarter E South America Postponed To October 18-20, 2021
Power Roll Trials Solar PV To Power Up Himalayan Villages
TLT Advises Innova Energy On £30m Refinancing Of 57 MW Solar Portfolio
Greencoat Renewables Announces First Transaction In Nordic Market
Oakapple Renewable Energy Appoint Stuart Gentry To Head Business Development
Tandem PV Devices Feel The Heat
UK Green Tech Company Myenergi To Double Workforce By 2021
Solar Power As Rental Offer Launched By Aggreko
Sonnedix Named ESG Global Solar Power Generation Sector Leader By GRESB
Everoze Creates Skyray To Design And Engineer Great Solar PV Projects
FIMER Powers UK Largest Rooftop Solar Project
Low Carbon Develop UK’s Largest Community-owned Solar Park
New Innovation Set To Change Renewable Energy Market
FRV And Harmony Energy To Develop Second UK Utility Scale Battery Project
Habitat Enerdy Enters Balancing Mechanism With Largest Battery
Sharp Launches New 440W Half-cut Cell PV Panel
×
Search the news archive

To close this popup you can press escape or click the close icon.
Logo
×
Logo
×
Register - Step 1

You may choose to subscribe to the Smart Solar Magazine, the Smart Solar Newsletter, or both. You may also request additional information if required, before submitting your application.


Please subscribe me to:

 

You chose the industry type of "Other"

Please enter the industry that you work in:
Please enter the industry that you work in:
 
X
Info
X
Info
{taasPodcastNotification} Array
Live Event