Feed-In Tariff (FIT)

Solar PV systems qualify for the government’s FIT, or Clean Energy Cash Back scheme, which guarantees a minimum payment for 25 years from the energy supplier to the householder for each unit (or kWh) of electricity generated by the system, as well as a separate payment for electricity exported to the grid.
The FIT is designed so that the average monthly income from your installation will be significantly greater than your monthly loan repayment.
Good for the environment, good for your bank account.

Feed-In Tariff – UK Mainland

The Feed-In Tariff is working well in Britain. Introduced in April 2010 many people are taking advantage of the guaranteed income from producing their own solar electricity. There are 3 was in which the Feed-In Tariff works:

  1. Every unit of electricity you produce by a ‘green means’ earns you money, whether that electricity is used or not. The price at which you join the scheme is guaranteed for 25 years, plus the tariffs are index linked to inflation (RPI) and will increase in line with that.
  2. In addition to the tariff paid for the electricity you produce, any excess produced is exported to the grid and a tariff of 3p/kWh extra is paid.
  3. You will greatly reduce your electricity bills by using the electricity you have produced rather than importing from the grid.

The tariff price a customer will receive is dependant on the type and size of installation. The tariff is banded as below.

Scale Generation Tariff p/kWh Duration – years
4kW new build
37.8 25
4kW retro fit
43.3 25
> 4 10 kW
37.8 25
> 10 50 kW
32.9 25

Renewable Energy Grants

As the Feed-In tariff is a government based scheme there are currently no grants available in conjunction with it. The Low Carbon Buildings Programme closed its doors to new applications when the tariff was launched and there are no other schemes currently running.

Northern Ireland

NIE deals with any renewable energy that creates electricity in Northern Ireland. When solar panels produce more electricity than is used within a property, the excess is exported to the national grid. The customer is then paid a tariff for the exported electricity. The NIE export tariff is changeable but currently stands at 5.49p/kWh of exported electricity.

The other means of revenue from solar PV panels are the NI Renewable Obligation Certificates. These are paid on every unit of electricity a customer produces whether it is used on site or exported to the grid. The current ROC rate is 4.24p/kWh produced and the customer will receive 4 ROCs per unit, totalling 16.96p/kWh produced. This figure is in addition to the export tariff.

In summary, for all electricity produced the customer receives ROCs plus the tariff for any electricity exported to the grid. For all electricity produced the customer gets 16.96p/kWh, and for all exported electricity this equals: 16.96p/kWh + 5.49p/kWh = 22.45p/kWh.