UK govt to halve FiTs for solar projects under 50 kW

Oct 31, 2011 - The UK intends to halve the feed-in tariffs (FiTs) for solar power systems with a capacity of less than 50 kW, motivated by the falling prices of solar photovoltaic products.

The energy ministry explained today that the costs of solar power installations have dropped by over 30% since April 2010, when the FiT for small systems was introduced.

Under the proposed reduction, a solar power facility whose capacity is below 4 kW will get a FiT of some GBP 0.21 (USD 0.34/EUR 0.24), compared to GBP 0.433 currently. The FiTs for installations between 4 kW-10 kW and 10 kW-50 kW will also be cut by some 50%.

Under the government proposal, the new tariffs will come into force on April 1, 2012. There is also a plan to impose a minimum energy efficiency standard on households and buildings applying for FiTs after that date.

In the summer of 2011, the UK government unveiled huge reductions in the FiTs for larger solar power installations. The significant cuts followed a fast track review reducing the tariffs for large-scale solar projects to protect the money available for small-scale projects and the range of technologies supported under the scheme.

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