A Shade Greener has installed its 10,000th free solar system this month, a figure that accounts for approximately 10 percent of all installations completed in the UK to date.
The milestone was reached shortly after A Shade Greener opened a new office in Paulton, South Bristol. The new office is designed to widen the company’s reach and meet the increasing level of demand further south of their Yorkshire-based headquarters.
The proposed cut to the feed-in tariff has resulted in the company receiving an influx of customers concerned about securing a free solar system. However, A Shade Greener has reiterated that it will continue to install free systems despite the new feed-in tariff rate.
Stewart Davies, Managing Director of A Shade Greener Ltd, said: “At a rate of 21p we can continue to install our free systems and provide our service to many thousands of homes, particularly those of pensioners and young families.
“The vast majority of our customers can't afford to buy solar PV, and therefore can't take advantage of the feed-in tariff scheme. Many of these households have been taken out of fuel poverty, because fitting Solar PV slashes 37% off their bills.”
However, Mr Davies is not so upbeat about the current proposal’s aggregation schemes and fears that it may impact on their current business model: “Whilst we agree with what the Government has done, the plans on aggregation to take effect in April 2012 will result in firms such as ours receiving only 80 percent of the domestic tariff of 21p, this may scupper our plans to provide individuals, Local Authority and Housing association homes with our free systems.”
Mr Davies’ concerns echo that of Homesun’s Daniel Green and Peter Capener, Chair, Bath and West Community Energy, who yesterday warned the EAC committee about the dangers of the new proposals on aggregation schemes.