At Qualitick™ Ltd, the award-winning provider of compliance support services, we would like to respond to the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) solar feed-in tariff consultation by urging customers to counter the cuts.

 

DECC are proposing that they are cutting solar feed-in tariffs up to 87%. At Easy MCS we are advising our customers to implement measures that will minimise the impact of the cuts.

We are urging installers to take advantage of the tiered drop in fees, which will drop to 12.47p from the 1st of October, then again to 1.63p in January for systems up to 10kW. We recommend that installers ensure that all installations are pushed through and signed off before January to take advantage of the current higher rates.

Further changes around technology, and in particular Tesla battery storage, are also high on our list of recommendations. Speaking about ways the industry can counter the cuts, Qualitick MD, Simon Roberts said:

“The proposed cut announced by the DECC is due to a couple of factors which affect the ROI which the cut is looking to balance, the actual cost of the equipment has come down significantly which will have an effect on the FITS as the ROI comes down in accordance with the equipment cost.

“We believe that customers should focus on the opportunities to use the full generation from PV in homes with improvements such as the Tesla battery storage units where the full production can be used and or stored ready for use.

“What this means in monetary terms is that previously the customer would get an export tariff for a kWh exported to the grid but still the pay for the electricity they need. And with improvements to battery storage now they can store and then draw the energy as they need it, meaning they don’t pay the rate to purchase the electricity.”

At Easy MCS we offer a range of products and services that are designed to help installers remain MCS Certified, a set of quality standards that MCS provide a minimum level of protection and assurance to consumers, as well as a sign of quality for MCS Installers to show their customers.

Easy MCS Consultant, Mark Roberts added: “I’ve been looking in depth in recent weeks at the Tesla Powerwall and, while I am yet to conclude my report, I believe that customers will save money through the export tariff, storing up solar PV and also storing straight from the grid in off-peak times. We are hoping to work with Tesla to help distribute this product to the market.”

In addition to the ‘counter cut tips’, we would like to reassure our Easy MCS customers that we will be on hand to ensure that the impact of the proposed DECC tariff cuts are minimised. Simon added: “We know customers will be concerned about the tariff cut, but we want to assure them that our team of dedicated account managers will be on hand to help them at every stage of the process.”

To find out more about the range of support available from Easy MCS , whether you are an existing MCS Installer or a New MCS Installer, contact the Easy MCS team on Freephone 0808 163 6975, email [email protected] or apply online at www.easy-mcs.com/register.html