Over the last four years there has been a growing trend in businesses generating their own power; recent Ofgem data highlights that the number of businesses has doubled in this time and studies have identified that independent generators have invested over £376M in 2015 installing over 1,000 commercial-scale renewable projects.
Businesses have been shown to be the most active in renewable energy over the last year with retailers, wholesalers, supermarkets and warehouse roofs suited to Solar PV installations (88 new energy projects in this sector last year). Further active sectors are the military and the transport sector, which have developed a number of sites generating over 60MW.
Latest figures indicate that independent generators supply approx. 7.6% of the UKs electricity demand. With changes to policy, removal of Levy’s, cuts to FiT along with a number of other subsidies independent generators now face a time of hesitation. With the future of energy policy being uncertain, along with electricity prices falling due to cheap oil and gas growth of this sector is unlikely to continuing growing at the same rate without new subsidies.
What is clear, is projects in the pipeline that have guaranteed subsidies are likely to be installed however, there is a number of uncertainties for other projects. Despite changes, the UK are legally binded to a number of targets to help drive decarbonisation including the Renewable Energy Directive 15% of all energy will come from renewables by 2020, and Climate Change Act (2008) 80% reduction in carbon emissions from 1990 levels by 2050.
With these targets still in place along with an increase in commercial installation over the last few years we hope that the trend to self-generation continues. CIS can support business of all size meet carbon targets and would be interested in talking to your business to see how we can help.
For more information please review the fourth annual report on independent renewable development.
6th May 2016