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‘World’s first’ incentive for renewable heat supplies


The launch,by Energy Secretary Chris Huhne,of the world’s first financial incen- tive of its kind intended to revolutionise the way heat is generated and used in buildings,the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI),has been broadly welcomed. The RHI will introduce a new tariff scheme for industry,the commercial and public sectors that will stand alongside the Renewables Obligation and (electricity) Feed-in Tariff (FIT) scheme to send a strong signal of support to the renewables sector. The government will shortly be asking Parliament to approve the scheme. Anything from a pub to a public library,


a school to a power plant will be eligible under the RHI to install technologies like biomass boilers,heat pumps and solar thermal,says the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). The tariffs will be paid for 20 years to eligible tech- nologies that have installed since July 2009,with payments being made for each kWh of renewable heat which is pro- duced. Tariff payments range from 1.9 p/kWh for some biomass plants,to 8.5 p/kWh for solar thermal installations under 200 kWth in size. Once in the scheme,the level of support


an installation will receive is fixed and will be adjusted annually with inflation. However,as with FITs, DECC expect the lev- els of support available for new entrants to the RHI scheme will decrease over time,


as the costs of the equipment and installa- tion reduce through economies of scale. By 2020,DECC estimate that the renew-


able heat sector will have grown to include around 13,000 installations in industry and 110,000 installations in the commercial and public sector,supplying 25% of the heat demand in these sectors. Less simply,RHI tariff payments will start


for homes alongside the Green Deal from 2012. In the meantime,up to 25,000 instal- lations from July this year will be sup- ported by an ‘RHI Premium Payment’ to help people cover the purchase price of green heating systems. Those taking up the Premium will then be eligible for a RHI tariff from October next year when the Green Deal begins,says DECC, as will any- one else who has had eligible equipment installed from July 2009. For new-build homes,an RHI tariff will be considered for the 2012 phase. The RHI Premium Payment will be worth around £15mn and will,adds DECC, ensure there is a fair spread of technolo- gies across all regions of Great Britain. The installed technologies will be monitored to enable government,manufacturers, installers and consumers to better under- stand how to make sure householders get the most out of them. A key focus of this initial phase will be on people living off the gas grid. DECC says it plans to publish details of


the RHI Premium Payment in May,and will consult on the RHI tariffs to apply from October 2012 later in the year. Currently,around half of the UK’s car-


bon emissions come from the energy used to produce heat – more than emissions from generating electricity,says DECC. The RHI will reduce emissions by 44 mn tonnes of carbon to 2020,an amount equivalent to the annual carbon emitted by 20 typical new gas power stations. The new financial incentive will encourage installation of equipment like renewable heat pumps, biomass boilers and solar thermal panels to reduce emissions and support the exist- ing 150,000 jobs in the heating industry, adds DECC. The Chief Executive of the Renewable


Energy Association,Gaynor Hartnell,was enthusiastic: ‘This novel policy should be much more effective than capital grants, as it rewards the production of renewable heat not just the installation of equip- ment. It is a revolutionary approach,but absolutely the right one. We don’t expect the scheme to be 100% perfect from the outset,but we will work with government to iron out any teething problems. However it is essential that the support levels published are sufficient to drive rapid expansion when the scheme goes live in July.’ Further details,including the tariff rates, are available at: www.decc.gov.uk/rhi


Marine energy devices head for the sea


Tidal energy device developer Minesto UK is receiving a grant of up to £350,000 from the Carbon Trust,funded by Invest Northern Ireland,to deploy the first seago- ing prototype of its innovative ‘seakite’ technology,Deep Green. The device works like a kite,tethered to the seabed,which flies through the sea current carrying a tur- bine. If trials are successful,Minesto plans to deploy enough devices around the UK’s


coastline to generate up to 530 GWh a year by 2020. The radically new concept can operate


in slower currents than other tidal energy technology,says the company. Deep Green’s kite-like structure flies in a figure of eight,steered by a rudder,and effec- tively accelerates the speed of the water entering the turbine by up to ten times, allowing more power to be generated.


The technology therefore has the poten- tial to unlock significant additional tidal resources,opening up new areas of low- velocity tidal streams around the UK’s coastline for electricity generation. The trial will see a one-tenth size version


of the Deep Green device put through its paces off the coast of Northern Ireland. Meanwhile,Ocean Power Technologies


has announced completion of the first of its new generation,utility-scale ‘PowerBuoy’ device,the PB150,the largest and most powerful wave power device designed by OPT to date. With a peak- rated power output of 150 kW,the PB150 is designed for use in arrays for grid- connected power generation projects worldwide. The device,built and assembled at


PB150 PowerBuoy tidal energy generator 8


Invergordon,Scotland,is being prepared for ocean trials at a site approximately 30 nautical miles from Invergordon,off Scotland’s north-east coast. A second PB150 is already under construction in the US for a proposed utility-scale project in Oregon.


Energy World April 2011


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