Monthly Archives: January 2014

Feed-in tariffs – another Old Boys network

 

The power generation feed in tariff scheme or scam depending how you look at it.

You can read about it feed in tariffs here and below is my take on it.

solar-techThe government's promotion of the feed in tariff scheme is most beneficial to companies and individuals who have signed up to the MCS (Microgeneration Certification Scheme) accreditation and scheme. To get onto the scheme, manufacturers and retailers have to get their products certified. This certification comes at a premium. The government benefits from the taxes that this certification process generates. It is like a club because is excludes manufacturers and retailers whose products meet and exceed expected safety and power standards but who are excluded simply because of not being a member of this club. There is no need for this requirement as solar energy related technology - for both domestic hot water systems and photovoltaic (P.V) for electricity generation is not that complicated and should be made more accessible especially since prices of equipment for both technologies have fallen significantly in recent years.

And yet this MCS entity is what is being used to determine how the taxpayers' money is spent on 'green projects' and the size of our energy bills via 'green taxes' which the public at large have not had any say in. The whole scheme seems to be geared towards putting people into yet more debt, as these MCS accredited systems and installers cost lot more than they would under equivalent free market prices. The scheme seems to benefit only the very rich who have bags of cash to spare and can afford an MCS certified and installed system and then have it paid for via the feed in tariffs at everyone else's expense. What the government's and the energy suppliers should do is only insist that the inverter unit that actually connects the system to the national grid is MCS certified and the connection inspected by a professional who could be an MCS certified installer but not necessarily so as a qualified electrician can easily do the job.

The fact that the Government guarantees payment of these feed in tariffs for 20 years only compounds the madness as again they can only do this by allowing the energy firms loot everyone else which means higher energy bills for you and me. The Government are fine with all of this as they get their cut in the form of V.A.T. The higher our the energy bills the more the Chancellor benefits.

Let's hope we will be able to change this cosy crony setup so that we, the people as a whole, will really be able to implement green technologies for a sustainable future and have lower energy bills at the same time.