Clean Energy

October this year heralds the start of a possible game-changing Government initiative called the Green Deal. The Green Deal will open up the residential improvements market as never before by removing the need for householders to fund the cost of energy efficiency up front through the use of an innovative type of loan secured against the energy meter of a property, rather than the householders themselves, and is based on a principle known as the ‘Golden Rule’ that ensures the cost of financing the installed measures is less than the energy saved by their installation.

Ryedale District Council is harnessing the energy of the sun to heat the Ryedale Pool in Pickering thanks to a huge solar thermal installation. The newly-introduced Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and ever increasing energy bills drove the council into investigating the possibility of installing a solar thermal system during a planned boiler replacement.

A sheltered accommodation block in Lancaster is now benefiting from renewable heat and electricity thanks to a combination of solar photovoltaic and solar thermal panels.

London-based renewable energy firm, Green Tomato Energy, is the latest solar installer to become a member of The Green Deal Finance Company (TGDFC) ahead of the Green Deal’s launch in October.

Following the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s (DECC) awarding of a £7 million loan to the Green deal Finance Company, a host of solar companies have come forward to announce their involvement in the scheme. 

A £7m loan from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to The Green Deal Finance Company (TGDFC) has been agreed today, coinciding with the opening of the register for Green Deal Providers, Assessors and Installers.

Local authorities will have to publish a report on their plans to achieve improved energy efficiency in their area by March 31, 2013, according to new guidelines issued under the Home Energy Conservation Act (HECA).

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has revealed that the framework underpinning the Green Deal has been approved by the House of Lords, in keeping with the department’s stated October launch date.

One of the first Green Deal Assessor courses to be undertaken has been completed. The City & Guilds 6066 course was hosted by PPL Training and saw a range of different candidates attend – from solar installers to plumbers.

Legislation for the Green Deal, the Coalition’s flagship environmental policy, has received final Parliamentary approvals.