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Government announces smaller than expected cuts to Feed-in Tariff

The Government has provided some Christmas cheer to the renewable energy industry after confirming cuts to the Feed-in Tariff will be less than first feared.

The new measures announced today are to deal with the projected over-allocation of renewable energy subsidies following recent consultations.

In the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) review consultation officials at the Department of Energy and Climate Change proposed updated tariffs for solar, wind and hydro power, and asked for industry and public feedback.

The Government says it has listened to the public response and has announced revised tariffs, including a new tariff for domestic-scale solar of 4.39p /kwh.

Energy Ministers insist the new Feed-in Tariff rates will provide a sustainable return for anyone investing in small scale renewable technology that contributes to the nation’s energy mix without imposing unnecessary burdens on bill payers who subsidise the renewables industry.

On Feed-in Tariffs, Government has also announced:

* Deployment caps will be set to limit new spending on the scheme to £100m up to the end of 2018/19

* The reintroduction of pre-accreditation for solar PV and wind generators over 50kW and all hydro and anaerobic digestion generators

* Measures to pause new applications to the FIT scheme from 15 January to 8 February, to allow time for the implementation of cost control measures

For the Renewable Obligation (RO) scheme for solar PV with a capacity at 5MW and below, Government has announced it will:

* Close the RO across Great Britain to new solar PV capacity at 5MW and below from 1 April 2016

* Introduce grace period arrangements to protect developers who made a significant financial commitment on or before 22 July 2015 and developers who experience grid delay beyond their control

* Provide clarification of the planning evidence for the significant financial commitment grace period to exclude incomplete or invalid applications

* Remove ‘grandfathering’ (a fixed rate of support from the date of accreditation) from 22 July 2015 for solar projects in England and Wales with an exception for those which meet the significant financial commitment criteria as of 22 July 2015

* Hold a solar-specific banding review in England and Wales and consult on new bands for 2016/17

* Consult on an exception designed to provide projects with protection against the proposed reduction in support where they qualify for the grandfathering exception.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary, Amber Rudd, said: “My priority is to ensure energy bills for hardworking families and businesses are kept as low as possible whilst ensuring there is a sensible level of support for low carbon technologies that represent value for money.

“We have to get the balance right and I am clear that subsidies should be temporary, not part of a permanent business model. When the cost of technologies come down, so should the consumer-funded support.”

The Government claims its support has driven down the cost of renewable energy significantly. As costs continue to fall and the sector moves towards sustainable electricity investment, Energy Ministers insist it becomes easier for parts of the renewables industry to survive without large subsidies.

The announcements today give a total reduction of £500m-£600m from the LCF overspend.