The latest installation figures published by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) show that installations have dropped by over 75 percent in the aftermath of the latest FiT cut, which saw the rate drop from 21p/kWh to 16p/kWh for domestic installations.
Installations for the end of the week stood at just 2,368 – down from 9,390 the week before. The drop in installs will concern industry who has been concerned that the newly-introduced tri-monthly degression model will further fuel the boom and bust cycle that industry has experienced in the run up to all FiT changes.
Domestic installations saw the largest drop in installation rates from 8,520 to a lowly 2,013 – a 76 percent fall in activity. Small commercial installations (4-10kW) have been performing the weakest out of all tariff bands but still saw a significant drop in installation levels from 366 to 117 – a 65 percent drop. Large commercial installations (10-50kW) grew from just one single installation in mid-August all the way up to 504 before plummeting by 53 percent.
It remains to be seen whether the latest rise and dip in installations ahead of the August 1 FiT cut will be a defining characteristic of the newly-introduced tri-monthly degression model or just a blip before installation rates stabilise ahead of certainty for future feed-in tariff rates.