If you are thinking about getting a solar installation then the time to do it is now. According to a leaked government document, the feed in tariff rates are about to be reduced by around 50%, from 43p per kilowatt hour to 21p per kilowatt hour. While a reduction was anticipated, this is set to happen sooner than expected, in just over a month’s time on December 8^th 2011.

There is still time to get the highest feed-in tariff rates if you get your solar installation soon.

If you are going to get the full financial benefit available from using solar energy then you are going to have to get your solar installation by then. With the fast 14 day installation that you can get from Solar Energies UK, as long as you act quickly then you will still be able to use the higher rates.

The Feed in Tariff

The way the feed in tariff works is that for every unit of electricity that your solar panels create, you get paid a certain amount. That is whether you use the energy or not, and if you don’t then it gets exported on to the National Grid and you get paid extra for that. Of course for all of the solar energy that you do use your energy bill is going to be reduced, so you will be making savings in that way as well.

Why the Change?

There are several reasons why the feed in tariff rates are being reduced. The main one, claims the government, is that the technology has become cheaper so it is no longer so expensive to get solar panels installed. However there have also been reports that the scheme has been much more successful than they anticipated, and they are running out of funds. Whatever the reason though, this reduction is going to have some significant effects.

Effects of the Change

The major effect of the change is that if you get your installation after the new rates are introduced you are going to be making far less money from your solar panels. Instead of taking only 10 years to be able to pay off the costs of the installation, as is usually the case with the current rates, it will take around 18 years. This is still better than the 25 years that it would normally take without the feed in tariff, but it does mean a significant reduction on your returns. At present you get around a 10% return on your investment, whereas after the changes your return is only going to be around 4%.

More Changes: Energy Performance Certificate

In addition to a reduction in the feed in tariff, there are going to be changes to the way you qualify for the scheme. In order to avoid even lower rates from the feed in tariff your property is going to have to get an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of at least level C. This means that you may need to have additional work done to your house to even get as much as 21p per kilowatt hour.

Get Your Installation Now

You still have time to get your solar panels installed before these changes come in to effect however, so if you want to get a solar installation the time to act is now. Get in touch with us at Solar Energies UK and we will be able to give you a free quote for a solar installation. Our MCS accredited solar installers can put up your solar panels in just a few days, so if you act quickly the highest rates are still available.

Written by admin

David Brown is an experienced practitioner in the solar energy market, and enjoys the opportunity to write about the on-going advancements and policy changes which he observes.

Tags: feed-in tariff, government, solar energy, solar energy uk, solar installation, solar installers, solar panels