Further pressure has been mounted on the government in its proposals around the closure of the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and the end the export tariff for new developments from next spring.
The Renewable Energy Association (REA) is the next organisation to supply evidence against the closure of FiT in a survey conducted with UK solar installers. The survey, published on 3 September, has revealed that four in 10 (40%) installers would consider leaving the industry and 78% of would considering reducing staff levels if the government’s proposals go ahead.
The survey covered 140 Renewable Energy Consumer Code (a subsidiary of REA) members. REA said that retaining the export tariff “to fairly compensate projects for the energy they generate” could “soften the blow” to the industry that closing the FiT would bring.
Also on the survey results, Dr Nina Skorupska CBE, Chief Executive of the REA, said: “While we would not normally be so stark, it is becoming increasingly clear that the Government is endangering the jobs of thousands with the current proposals for the closure of the Feed-in Tariff without any adequate replacement alternative measures to assist this important sector.”
The survey echoed similar results to that of a Solar Power Portal poll published on 30 August. The poll found that the majority of UK solar installers have said they would “face hardship” if the government goes ahead with plans to close the FiT export tariff.
Released on 30 August, the poll found nearly nine in 10 (88%) said they disagreed with the government’s proposals on the FiT closure, while 73% said the closure of the export tariff with no replacement framework would have a negative impact on their day-to-day business activities. 57% said it could result in them having to either downsize or close their business altogether, which yields a similar impression as REA’s figures of 78% and 40% for downsizing and exiting the industry respectively.