At the beginning of every New Year it is human nature to sit back and reflect on events of the past twelve months whilst imagining the exciting times that lie ahead. And, I’m sure many of you reading this will have joined me in a collective sigh of relief as we left the turbulent UK solar industry of 2011 behind on December 31 and looked forward to a more positive and (with any luck) stable market in 2012.
Yet, sadly, even with this year’s clichéd ‘clean slate’ waiting patiently to be marked, a great shadow of uncertainty still looms as Government today prepares to once more lock horns with the UK solar industry.
A victory of sorts
At the tail end of last year, after months of confusion and disorder, the 21st day of December saw Friends of the Earth – alongside certain members of the UK solar industry – win their case against Government’s proposed solar installation deadline. Up until then it seemed almost certain that any residential solar systems registered after the December 12 cut-off point would receive the lower 21p rate from April 1 onwards [may I clarify that it has always been the intention to implement the new rates from April 1 – the 12/12 deadline was simply an eligibility marker], a proposal that spurred a great amount of anger in the UK solar industry.
Many were outraged by Government’s decision to cut the tariff rates by more than 50 percent, not least because the cut-off date was two weeks before the consultation period ended. So, when it was ruled that this deadline was “unlawful,” you’d expect to see celebrations all round – wouldn’t you?
Unfortunately, the truth of the matter is: the market is now more uncertain than ever before.
On the day of the High Court ruling we ran a poll on the Solar Power Portal in a bid to capture the immediate reaction from industry. Out of 210 respondents only 32 people were pleased with the result, believing it will prevent future instances of reckless policy decisions while 26 hope the decision will map out a sensible glide-path for the future of PV installations in the UK. Interestingly almost 21 percent (32 votes) said the decision will only serve to pile more uncertainty on the industry, while 40 percent are unsure what the effect of the ruling will be.
Since being back in the office my conversations with industry have followed a similar path, with many companies unsure of how to proceed in the next few months. And, unfortunately, I have been unable to provide them with any concrete guidance, since everything is again very much up in the air.
What lies ahead?
Tomorrow Government is expected to submit an appeal against the High Court decisionto move the installation deadline (despite being refused leave to do so). The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) holds fast in its opinion that if action isn’t taken now, there will be no budget for the future, while industry maintains that if the 12/12 deadline remains, the industry will be left in tatters.
So, having reached an impasse; until the response to the appeal is known, industry is left with no choice but to continue its waiting game. Right now residential solar installers don’t know which of their projects will remain eligible for the higher tariff rates and which will be subject to the cuts.
Again, only time will tell.
