[ Green: Light ]
Feed-in tariffs (FITs)
Feed-in tariffs (FITs) aim to support small low to no- carbon generators through payments made by energy suppliers to anyone who uses small capacity micro generation (notably those with under 50kW capacity). FITs also provide an incentive for smart metering. Under the FIT, there are two main tariffs – generation and export. For those with photovoltaic (PV) panels, the building owner is paid for producing electricity on-site and the PV output reduces the amount of electricity they have to buy from the grid. An additional export tariff allows any excess electricity to be exported to the grid. FITs should encourage wider energy reduction measures if the intention is to export electricity back to the grid, though most buildings will use renewables to take the edge off their carbon demand, rather than be net energy exporters.
of carbon allowances under the the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) (see box, left). Let’s take a quick look at some returns on capital from
three very different real cases (adapted from information provided by Schneider Electric): Firstly, the installation of a variable speed motor, where
the cost of the product and the installation was recouped in under a year; Secondly, the application of power factor correction,
requiring an outlay of around £2,000 but also providing a payback of under a year; and Thirdly, external lighting control, incorporating voltage reduction, where the £7,000 outlay is expected to be recouped in less than three years. It is sometimes forgotten that as building operators
sail past payback periods, the net savings go straight to their bottom line, for the lifetime of these energy-saving measures. In fact, an impressive array of carbon reduction
measures is available to M&E or electrical contractors, including: n Lighting; n Heating and ventilation; n Controls and meters;
Case study:
Wessex Electrical
ECA member Wessex Electrical played a key role in the construction of a major hotel complex on the south coast. Working with main contractor Spetisbury Construction, Wessex Electrical was involved in installing the building’s ‘low to no’ carbon technologies, including solar water heating and CHP plant, plus energy-saving light fittings, PIR and microwave detectors. The work required considerable expertise to help ensure that the various carbon reduction technologies work together effectively, to give the low-carbon performance the client needs.
n Sensors and timers; n The building: - Power factor correction - Voltage reduction - Optimising equipment servicing, maintenance and replacement;
n Equipment:
- Introducing variable speed motors - Energy efficient IT - Specifying high-energy performance equipment – and identifying and avoiding energy hungry equipment; and, if we follow the hierarchy, then last but not always least
n Renewable energy (microgeneration, etc).
Myth two: For the built environment, sustainability means renewables
Micro-renewables are some of the solution, some of the time, but that’s pretty much it. All things being equal (and they seldom are) there can be a financial case for installing micro-renewables in new buildings, particularly with the arrival of feed-in tariffs (FITs) – and many M&E contractors have already engineered a niche for integrating renewables into new projects. But while micro-renewables play a significant role
in some new buildings, this is less true for the bulk of existing commercial buildings, even with FITs. The cost of installation and disruption often means there is a no financial case for installing micro-renewables on existing buildings – unless major building work is already planned for another reason. Even then, other circumstances, such as the location and elevation, have to be just right. Some leading building services engineers have been queuing up to tell clients that renewables should be the last thing to fit onto an existing commercial building, not the first. For example, at London’s ‘Ecobuild’ exhibition in March, Bill Wright of Wright Energy, formerly head of energy management at the John Lewis Partnership, told commercial delegates to ‘look at the basics such as controls first’. At the same event, Mike Malina of Energy Solutions Associates added: ‘The key is integration and controls. We have to avoid lots of technologies being thrown at buildings that will end up working against each other.’
The ‘Merton rule’
Numerous local authorities have adopted the ‘Merton rule’, which puts a requirement on developments of more than 1,000 square metres to install at least 10 per cent of the predicted energy requirement as renewables. To further underline that there is more to sustainable buildings than fitting renewables, M&E Sustainability chairman Jim O’Neil has said that the Merton rule has allowed some developers to ‘drag poorly performing buildings over the line by sticking on renewables’. But like it or loathe it, the Merton rule continues to influence carbon-reduction measures in big floor-space projects, and to shape our skylines.
Like it or loathe it, the Merton rule continues to influence carbon-reduction measures
Summer 2010 ECA Today 19
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