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The UK has once again slipped down international rankings for attractive renewable energy markets after the new government’s decisions to close Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and approve Hinkley Point C “dealt a blow” to the country’s prospects.

A letter signed by over 20 organisations has put pressure on energy and intellectual property minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe to retain solar thermal within the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), as the industry continues to wait for the government’s decision.

Edinburgh is celebrating the completion of what is thought to be the largest community-owned rooftop solar framework in the UK after 1.4MW of solar was deployed across the city’s public buildings.

The verdict of last week’s National Audit Office report into the Levy Control Framework was damning for the government, but nothing UK solar wasn’t already fully aware of. If the government must be more transparent in the future, Perhaps it could start by confirming just how – as the NAO report seems to show – it allowed rhetoric – rather than fact – to dictate policy.

The government has been accused of “worrying complacency” over Scotland’s renewable energy sector after its response to a recent report avoided specific calls for an indication of support for renewable electricity generators and technologies.

The first crowd-funded solar project at a higher education institution has been completed at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) after raising more than £22,000 in a matter of weeks.

Forster Energy has partnered with Renewable Energy Investments (REI) to offer a power purchase agreement (PPA) model allowing a wide range of potential clients to adopt solar energy at zero upfront cost.

ESB has made a €2.5 million investment in utility-scale solar developer Terra Solar in an effort to “accelerate the development of solar energy generation in Ireland”.

Across the globe, solar and renewable energy initiatives and investments are at record levels. From huge multinationals like Apple to local public bodies, organisations have realised the long-term potential of solar.

Foresight Solar Fund has confirmed it is to launch yet another fund raising drive, this time to close the purchase of 82MW of UK solar assets prior to the end of the year.