Money Matters: Grants Available for Microgeneration
Microgeneration technology is an effective way to reduce your electricity costs. In addition, several government grants are available to help install renewable energy sources and efficiency upgrades to your home or business.
These grants and other financing options can help you earn back your investment in solar panels and wind turbines. You can learn more about various financing grants. You check out Utility Bidder for more facts.
Let’s take a deep dive into each one below:
Smart Export Guarantee
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a UK government scheme that provides financial incentives for domestic and business customers to export electricity generated by eligible renewable energy sources to the national grid.
The SEG was introduced in January 2010 and is currently the only scheme in the UK.
Under the SEG, customers with eligible renewable energy sources can receive payments for every unit of electricity they export to the grid.
The payment depends on the technology used and the customer’s tariff rate.
The current incentive payments under the scheme are:
- Solar PV: 4.85p/kWh
- Wind: 3.87p/kWh
- Hydro: 2.63p/kWh
- Biomass: 1.78p/kWh
The above payments are on top of the customer’s standard electricity tariff rate.
So, for example, if a customer with a solar PV system exports 1 kWh of electricity to the grid at a tariff rate of 12p/kWh, they would receive a total payment of 16.85p/kWh (12p/kWh + 4.85p/kWh).
Under the contract terms, the customer agrees to export a certain amount of electricity to the grid over a set period.
The customer will also agree to a fixed price for each unit of electricity exported. This fixed price is known as the ‘export tariff’ and is usually lower than the standard electricity tariff rate.
The customer will receive payments for every unit of electricity they export to the grid at the agreed export tariff rate.
These payments are made by the electricity supplier who offers the SEG contract. They are made quarterly in arrears and are paid directly into the customer’s bank account.
The SEG is open to all renewable technologies, including solar PV, wind, hydro, and biomass.
Customers interested in exporting electricity must find an electricity supplier who offers the SEG.
Currently, several electricity suppliers offer the SEG, including E.ON, power, ScottishPower, and Good Energy. Once a customer has found an electricity supplier that offers the SEG, they will need to enter into a contract with that supplier.
Green Homes Grants
The Green Homes Grant scheme is funded by the Irish government and supported by Energia and Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI).
The grant is available to homeowners who want to install a renewable energy system in their homes. You can also use it for retrofitting existing systems or developing microgeneration strategies.
The Green Homes Grant provides financial assistance towards the cost of installing renewable energy systems in your homes, such as solar panels, wind turbines, and biomass boilers.
The grant covers up to 25% of the project’s total cost, with a maximum of €5,000 per property per annum.
There are several advantages associated with installing a renewable energy system:
It reduces your carbon footprint by reducing your consumption of fossil fuels such as oil and gas. It can reduce your carbon footprint by more than 30%. As a result, you will significantly contribute to reducing global warming and climate change.
You will save money on your electricity bills because you won’t need to purchase as much electricity from your utility company anymore. This means you could see up to 20% savings on your electricity bills in just one year.
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Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)
The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) encourages businesses and domestic users to switch to renewable heat sources. The scheme offers a financial incentive for microgeneration technologies such as solar thermal, biomass boilers, and ground source heat pumps.
The scheme is open to all businesses, charities, schools, and public sector organizations on a non-profit basis. It is also available to domestic customers not connected to the gas grid.
The more renewable energy is used, the greater the rebate received by participants in the scheme. However, if you use less than 50% green energy, you will not receive any financial support from this scheme.
There are two types of RHI. Let’s discuss the details of each one below.
Domestic RHI
The Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is a financial incentive for anyone who installs a renewable heat system in their home.
The incentive will pay you for the heat generated by your system, so you can reduce your heating bills and help fight climate change simultaneously.
If you want to install a renewable heating system in your home or business but aren’t sure if it’s worth it, the government has made things simple with the Domestic RHI. You’ll receive payments over 20 years based on your system’s energy, making it easier to pay back the installation cost.
Business RHI
Businesses can also benefit from the RHI, which offers payments toward the cost of installing eligible renewable technologies up to 20 years after installation.
The Business RHI is similar to the domestic scheme but with different conditions and payment levels.
It covers solar photovoltaic (PV), wind turbines, and biomass boilers (including woodchip boilers).
If you generate electricity from these technologies, you could earn money from selling it back to the National Grid. The government pays you for every unit of energy your system generates, so you get cash back for what you’re producing.
You can apply for an RHI grant if your business uses gas or oil and generates more than 30% of its heat from renewable sources.
Final Thoughts
A growing number of grants and tax breaks are available to help offset renewable energy systems’ costs.
There are many financial incentives, whether you want a better investment return or work towards lowering your carbon footprint.
With the domestic grants listed above, you can save money while at the same time reducing your carbon footprint.
Participating in the government’s microgeneration initiative could allow you to reduce your domestic fuel bills and even earn money by generating electricity, heating, and hot water through renewable sources.
