It's been mentioned on this blog on more than one occasion and elsewhere on the Internet about Germany reducing its feed-in tariffs for solar energy, but what exactly are the figures?
In an attempt to find the answer myself, I came across this article by Industrial Fuels and Power.
In it, they quote:
"Moves to slash the level of support for solar are already underway. Roof-top solar systems are due for a 16% cut while open-field projects will see a 15% drop in their feed in tariffs. However, the real losers will be solar installations on agricultural land, which are set to have their feed in tariffs removed completely. The situation is expected to have dramatic implications for German solar cell manufacturers"
The real question is with Germany realising its unable to sustain the levels of subsidies and grants it's paying out, will the same thing happen in the UK?
Well, firstly, it's recognised that the UK's tariffs are lower than our European counterparts and secondly, it must be remembered that Germany is much further along the micro-generation route with 3.8GW installed in 2009 alone.
The European Photovoltaic Industry Association doesn't expect the UK to be above 4GW until 2020.
Only time will tell but as we've alluded to already, it's possible the biggest losers in a reduction of tariffs would be those companies offering free installations in return for keeping the installation subsidies and generation tariffs thereafter.
Read the full article by clicking here.
photo credit: aenneken
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