10 fold increase in UK solar power during 2010

Weren't we saying only yesterday that it was not hard to imagine the UK having to re-think it's solar panel feed-in tariffs if they got too over subscribed like Spain's have?

Statistics from Ofgem (the energy regulator) as reported on Click Green, reveal that despite 2010 being one of the coldest years on record, it didn't stop a 10 fold expansion of solar energy in the UK during 2010.

17,557 feed-in tariff registered installations are now generating a total of 57.6 megawatts of energy.

The exact breakdown shows how much the photovoltaic solar panel feed-in tariffs have played a part in that success - 16,375 of the 17,557 were photovoltaic installations, with 1,007 being wind turbines and 157 being hydro-electric sites.

The worry is that the Government could try to incentivise other renewables like wind by reducing solar subsidies or the tariffs get so over subscribed (as has happened in Spain) that they have no choice but to reduce the tariffs considerably.

If only we could look into a crystal ball? Whatever, a drop in the level of solar subsidy tariffs will become more likely the closer we get to the review period (last reported to be in 2013 I believe) so if you're looking to maximise your payback from your own solar panel installation, then the time to start investigating that is now.

photo credit: edkohler

To little - not to late

I was intrigued by numbers quoted in the Morning Star (online) the other day - so much so that I wanted to share them with you.

It seems that despite fears that the Feed-in tariffs would cause a runaway boom, it's not been the case. It would seem the tariffs have failed to really ignite the renewable energy cause, with installations totally a capacity of just 16 megawatts. A figure we're told that's in line with Government predictions.

To put that figure into perspective, Germany installed six gigawatts of solar energy this year - that's almost 400 times the UK's effort.

The article blames a "towering lack of ambition" on British policy. It cites the first biomethane plant at Didcot which opened recently. Whilst other plants are also being built and nearing completion, the article points out that it would take 200 similar plants to deliver half of the UK's domestic gas supply.

To put that into perspective, Germany has 3,500 biomethane plants already in operation and China has 4,000 city scale plants in addition to 40 million smaller installations.

Read the full report yourself here.

photo credit: emli bendixen

Multi-storey solar panels

Many Councils are currently reviewing their public buildings to see if their roofs are suitable for solar panel installations.

One local Council - Hull - has already begun a more in-depth feasibility study to see if the idea of using the large roof spaces on 4 multi-storey car parks is viable.

If such schemes do go ahead, it's envisaged that not only will electricity generated be used to power the car parks themselves but that a hoped for surplus will be 'sold back' to the Grid, making another source of income for cash-strapped councils.

Gary Porter, the chairman of the Local Government Association Environment Board, said that councils have many buildings, which include a range of depots, community centres and leisure facilities, and all of these can be transformed to generate green power. The money they would be able to earn from this could be used to lower taxes, he added, so there is much enthusiasm in town halls about this.

photo credit: dazzie d