Good Energy has welcomed the announcement that feed-in tariffs for micro-generation will be included in the Government's Energy Bill today.
However, the company warned the Government not to let the benefits get lost in transmission.
Juliet Davenport, CEO and founder of Good Energy said: "We applaud the new Minister for recognising the important role domestic micro-generation can play in tackling climate change. Currently, 30% of the country's carbon emissions come from our homes and this is where we need solutions. However, the devil is in the detail. Home generators must be incentivised to use the energy they generate in their own home and only export the surplus. If they are encouraged to simply generate for export we will see all the benefits of this announcement quickly get lost in transmission."
Good Energy has developed a system to encourage micro-generation for four years through its Home Generation Scheme. Under this scheme Good Energy pays customers generating their own electricity 10 pence for each unit they produce – said to be the highest payback tariff of any supplier for total generation.
It differs from other feed-in schemes by paying home-generators for each unit they generate – including the units they use – not just the units they feed into the grid. There is no requirement for customers to pay for a separate export meter.
"A lot of power can be lost through transmission lines once energy is fed into the grid. The most efficient use of domestic generation is in the home where it is produced," Davenport added. "The Government should combine the feed-in tariff with a series of efficiency incentive measures to lower total energy use altogether."
