Dimplex has given a reserved welcome to the latest announcement on
the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme, but is calling on government to
fill in the gaps as a priority so that the industry can gear up for
future growth.
The outline plans revealed have not fulfilled all industry hopes;
there are a number of omissions representing missed opportunities,
while further clarity is needed on other aspects of the scheme.
Chris Davis, business development director at Dimplex Renewables,
comments: “While any support for the UK renewables market is good
news, this announcement falls some way short of the industry’s
expectations.
“In its current form, the scheme is unlikely to provide the growth
stimulus the industry needs if we are to work together to achieve
the government’s target of 12 percent of heat from renewable sources
by 2020. We’d like to see some of the scheme’s gaps filled in, in
particular with regard to domestic tariff payments, and also we see
a clear need to work with government on getting non-domestic and
communal residential air source systems included under the scheme.
It’s crucial to maintain the momentum from this announcement and not
lose sight of the need to continue moving ahead.”
RHI tariff payments for commercial-scale installations will come
into effect in July 2011, but for heat pumps in the first year at
least, only ground and water source technologies are included, with
air source excluded. This will affect the uptake of commercial scale
and multi-dwelling air source systems, which have already proved
extremely efficient in the UK, adds Chris Davis, “and in retrofit
applications, the advantages of air source in terms of cost and
relative ease of application seem to have been overlooked.” A host
of other detailed issues, relating to product and installer
eligibility for systems beyond the scope of MCS and clarity over the
requirements for metering, remain unanswered.
In the domestic sector, the implementation of the RHI has now been
pushed back to October 2012, with tariff rates yet to be confirmed.
While a Renewable Heat Premium – a one-off payment worth around 10
percent of a typical air source installed cost – is intended to
bridge the funding gap until tariff-based payments come into effect,
there is doubt over whether this will provide sufficient certainty
for householders to switch to renewables without the assurance of
long-term support through tariff payments.
In particular, this lack of certainty on domestic tariffs is likely
to limit uptake of renewable heating systems by social housing
providers – a sector where the tackling of fuel poverty is most
crucial. “It’s unlikely that a social housing landlord will be able
to commit to an installation which would previously have been
eligible for LCBP2 or CERT funding, without any guarantee of ongoing
support,” comments Chris Davis.
“It is absolutely imperative that the government announces details
of the domestic tariff rates alongside confirmation of the Renewable
Heat Premium Payments in May to prevent a major slowdown in the
domestic renewable heat sector while the market waits for the full
details to be made available.”
More details on the RHI announcement can be found on the DECC
website at www.decc.gov.uk/en/news.
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