Is the sun no longer on the side of UK property owners?

You’d have hoped the sun would have stayed neutral in the continuing row between the UK Solar industry and the Coalition Government in the guise of the Department for Energy & Climate Change (DECC)……however the lack of sun this summer is simply adding to the woes, not only of the Solar industry, but also to those who have or are considering fitting Solar panels.

The UK already suffers from having less sunshine hours per year than the vast majority of mainland Europe, and this Summer has been the worst possible advert for this trend. Whilst not the norm, the lack of sunshine can only be a negative when UK property owners are considering whether to invest in renewable green energy, despite the fact there is still sufficient radiation around even on cloudy days to offer a decent return on investment.

Things have been seemingly made worse by the DECC’s recent announcement that the Solar Feed in Tariff will be reduced yet still further by 3.5% on 1st November 2012

Not content with having reduced the Solar PV tariff from 43p per Kwh to 16p, from 1st November 2012, this will be 15.44p per Kwh for any domestic user fitting an installation that is under 4 KW. New solar photovoltaic installations of between 4KW and 10 KW with eligibility dates on or after 1st November 2012 will get 13.99p per Kwh rather than the 14.5p per Kwh that came into effect on 1st August. As these rates are reduced every three months, there is a possibility that the FIT will be reduced yet further still on 1st February 2013, and given the trend and this Government’s seeming desire to do all they can to discourage UK home owners from investing in renewable green energy, a further reduction is likely, especially as the guaranteed period has already been slashed from 25 to 20 years!

Having got the gloom and doom out the way, UK property owners who are not put off by circumstances and who can see the wood despite the trees, can still get a cracking R.O.I. from installing Solar PV. This is because, whilst the FIT has been slashed beyond belief, so has the cost of installing Solar photovoltaic panels, and the DECC has actually increased the export tariff by 50% since 1st August 2012 so all spare electricity generated will earn more than those who paid more for their installations last year.

The net effect is that the return on investment is very similar to a householder who fitted Solar PV in 2011, so if you are considering installing solar panels, then make sure you do so before 31st October 2012, as you already now know that you will save yourself 3.5% by doing so. What to find about more about energy efficient solar PV systems whilst remarkably they still can bring a ray of sunshine into your home?