25 January 2012

The Governments Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) appeal was refused today by the Court of Appeal. This is another positive indicator that the proposed cuts made on 12 December 2011 are unlikely to be implemented.

The Government was appealing against a decision by the High Court just before Christmas upholding a legal challenge from Friends of the Earth and two solar companies that the Government’s plan to reduce the FITs for new solar PV systems before its consultation on the proposed changes had finished was "legally flawed".

The Government has already confirmed that they are seeking permission to appeal today’s decision in the Supreme Court. This means it is unclear whether solar PV systems installed from 12 December 2011 onwards will qualify for the old FITs tariffs or the proposed reduced ones until either (i) the Government is refused permission to appeal to the Supreme Court or (ii) the Supreme Court issues a ruling.

A spokesman for the Supreme Court has been quoted this afternoon as saying it will take two months for a decision on whether the Government is able to appeal or not and, if permission is granted, a further six months or more for a decision on the appeal.

If the Government is refused permission to appeal or the Supreme Court rules against the Government then all solar PV systems installed from 12 December 2011 to 2 March 2012 will get the previous FITs rates (eg 43.3p/kWh for up to 4kWp). Solar PV systems installed from 3 March 2012 onwards will get the proposed reduced FITs rates (eg 21p/kWh for up to 4kWp).

If the Supreme Court rules in favour of the Government then all solar PV systems installed from 12 December 2011 will get the proposed reduced FITs rates.

The tariff rates for solar PV systems installed before 12 December 2011 are not affected.

Even at the proposed reduced FITs rates we are still able to provide systems with a good rate of return and payback period for customers because we have negotiated price reductions for the panels and other system components. If you don’t already have solar PV installed and are considering it we would encourage you to get it installed before 1 April 2012 when the Government has proposed introducing a stringent new energy efficiency requirement for the buildings that all new solar PV systems are installed on or connected to.