Feed in Tariffs, abbreviated FITs, make it profitable for homes, businesses and communities to invest in the micro generation of electricity. Every unit of electricity produced is paid for as well as an extra payment is made for power which is exported to the grid. This makes a triple saving, as households can generate their own free electricity, for their own use while getting paid for it, and then any surplus can be sold to an electric company. The government hopes the scheme will help to reduce carbon emissions and make the United Kingdom less dependent on fossil and nuclear fuels.
FITs will encourage the installation of wind turbines and solar panels, for the production of electricity by households or communities. Payments for electricity are guaranteed under the scheme if the electricity has been produced using a renewable means. On the 1st of April 2010 these tariffs were first made available from the big six suppliers of electricity in the UK, excluding Northern Ireland.
Smart building design combined with micro power generation
A lot of energy is wasted through poor insulation in buildings. Drafty windows and doors can increase energy bills. Investing financially in a home or businesses insulation and renewable energy generation can give a return of between five to eight percent on the capital invested. 41.3 pence is paid for every unit of renewable energy generated and 3 pence for power exported to the grid. This can be better than money in the bank and a sounder investment than putting savings into some insecure financial institutions.
Building materials, such as stone, can be utilized in the house to absorb heat which can then be released when it is needed during the cooler times of the day or the evening. Windows can be installed in a direction to face the sun’s warm rays to increase the amount of heat that is absorbed 소액결제현금화 by the building naturally. Low energy bulbs and appliances can be used to reduce the power consumption.
These measures when combined with a ground source heat pump to supply the buildings heating and hot water needs, as well as photo voltaic cells to produce electricity can create a saving of almost sixty percent of the energy cost of the average household. This is a substantial saving of money, carbon output and nuclear fuel.
Why the government is committed to feed in Tariffs
The government is legally bound to increase renewable energy in the UK by fifteen percent of the total energy produced by the year 2020. This is up thirteen percent of the two percent that was required in 2009. Encouraging citizens to become micro electricity generators of renewable energy is a key to reaching this target.
A lot of power is lost through transmission over large distances through the grid. This is a waste of environmentally unfriendly resources such as fossil and nuclear fuels which are used to produce this electricity. A large number of micro generators will create a network of “green electricity” which is delivered more efficiently. This system will use the electricity where it is generated eliminating the need for it to be transmitted over large distances.
Who is eligible for these tariffs?
All renewable generators which produce no more than five megawatts of electricity and are approved under the Micro Certification Scheme (MCS) are eligible to receive the tariffs. This makes homes, schools, farms, hospitals, nursing homes, churches, offices, businesses and many others all able to claim these savings in England, Scotland and Wales.
The Micro Certification Scheme is linked with the feed in Tariffs and they work together hand in hand. The Micro Certification Scheme covers technologies which use wind energy, small scale hydro, biomass and solar photovoltaic to generate electricity. A company which