The Government have decided to cut subsidies to householders installing roof top solar panels by 65% just days after agreeing to a low carbon energy future at the climate change conference in Paris.
A report by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) showed that financial aid of 4.39p per kilowatt hour will be available from next month instead of the existing 12.47p.
This new figure means that the original proposal by Amber Rudd, the Energy and Climate Change secretary, has been altered after a storm of criticism. The original proposal saw subsidies being slashed by 85% to 1.63p.
In the report, the DECC say: "Most of the new tariffs provide for a higher rate of return than previously consulted on and, in most cases, the level of support has increased beyond levels proposed...the level of incentive offered reflects the cost of deployment whilst remaining within the boundaries of European Union state aid approval."
The Solar Trade Association had warned that more than 6,000 jobs have been lost as solar installers such as the Mark Group closed ahead of the likely cuts.
Barbara Stoll from Greenpeace said: "Bowing to pressure from the public and businesses, the Government has swapped a blunt axe for a sharp scalpel, but it’s still cutting in the wrong place...why are ministers signing a blank cheque for expensive, outdated nuclear power while pinching pennies for an energy source on the cusp of a massive investment boom? This makes no economic sense and will only put up bills in the long run."
She also added, "with costs falling, demand rising, and post-Paris momentum growing, the UK solar sector will see off the Government’s attacks. The question is how many more jobs, investments, and business opportunities are we wasting because of George Osborne’s incoherent policies. If the Government is as committed as it claims to be to the Paris climate deal, then solar is one of the cheapest and safest ways for the UK to deliver on it."
The Solar Trade Association also expressed disappointed that the Government has not listened more closely to the 55,000 responses to its consultation programme on subsidies which had almost all argued that aid should not be cut heavily.
Alasdair Cameron, renewable energy campaigner for Friends of the Earth, also added: "Less than a week after the UK Government agreed in Paris to keep global temperatures well below 2 degrees, the Government has shown its true colours – and they’re certainly not green. These huge, misguided cuts to UK solar are a massive blow for the economy and jobs, and further undermine the Government’s already tarnished credibility on tackling climate change."
