DECC announces £125 million Green Deal cash back offer

The Government has announced that it has set aside a budget of £125 million for its Green Deal cash back scheme in a bid to drive the uptake of the greener home initiative.
Under the scheme, homeowners in England and Wales will be able to receive up to £1,000 in cash for any energy saving home improvements made under the Green Deal. However, today’s published rates are only guaranteed for the first £40 million of the budget.
The Green Deal cash back scheme will be available from January 28, 2013 and will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Households which make improvements such as loft insulation, solid wall insulation and replacement windows under the Green Deal will be able to qualify for the cash back scheme. The more improvements made, the more cash back the household can receive.
 Energy Secretary, Edward Davey, said: “The Green Deal will provide unprecedented choice for consumers wanting to improve their homes and make them more energy efficient. This cash back offer will help get the Green Deal off to a flying start. It really is a great offer – the more work households have done, the more energy they stand to save and the more cash they receive.
“The Green Deal also presents a great opportunity for businesses of all sizes to take advantage of this transforming market – and now is a critical time. Whatever your business does in this sector, the Green Deal will have an impact. So I say to businesses large and small – gear up, get training and get ready to take advantage of the Green Deal.”
The cash back offer is limited to one per household but can encompass several energy saving improvements within the household as long as the householder is contributing to installation costs and that the work done is overseen by an authorised Green Deal provider. Private or social landlords can also benefit from the cash back offer if they are paying for the improvement costs themselves.
In addition to pocketing the cash, households have the option to donate the cash back to registered charities and Community Interest Companies who have signed up with the scheme administrator. The Green Deal cash back scheme will also benefit authorised installers and assessors who can use it to attract customers where they are working with a Green Deal provider.
The new cash back scheme appears to have been welcomed by the industry. Brian Smithers, director of electrical distributor Rexel UK, said: “A headline grabbing cash incentive is exactly what the Green Deal needs to raise awareness amongst consumers. If this initiative is a success, and we see a rush in enquiries, this is where the recently announced Green Deal advisors will be crucial. Solid, impartial advice from accredited advisors and commitment from accredited providers to install energy saving solutions, will be key to converting those interested by the cash back scheme into early adopters of the Green Deal. It’s down to us, as an industry, to work together and ensure that all the relevant information is easily accessible for households and businesses alike.”

 Source: Solar Power Portal

Energy efficiency is the answer to rising fuel bills

Four of the Big Six UK energy providers are expected to increase energy prices by the end of this year after Scottish and Southern Electric (SSE) announced plans to increase domestic gas and electricity prices by an average of 9 percent from October 15. The price rise, set to affect 5 million electricity customers and 3.4 million gas customers, means SSE’s average standard dual-fuel bill will increase by more than £100 a year from £1,172 to £1,274. Rising bill payments are becoming an increasing concern for many UK consumers according to industry experts, especially with winter just around the corner and a recession underway. Yet Government believes it has an answer to the problem of rising fuel bills as it prepares to launch its flagship energy policy, the Green Deal, in October this year, coinciding with the UK’s largest solar dedicated event, Solar Power UK 2012. “The Green Deal will play a huge role in improving the energy efficiency of our homes and businesses, with ECO making sure that the most vulnerable homes benefit too,” explained Energy Secretary and Climate Change Secretary Edward Davey. “I am determined to make sure that, in addition to creating huge opportunities for Green Deal providers and businesses along with thousands of new jobs, this new market in energy efficiency will deliver the very best deal for consumers.” The policy will work by offering UK homeowners and businesses the opportunity to retrofit buildings with energy saving measures at no upfront cost, with repayments made through energy bill savings. These measures, which will include wall and loft insulation, boiler upgrades, energy efficient lighting, and renewable energy installations, will help to bring bill costs down by reducing reliance on fuel providers. Richard Gould, Director of Inspection Services at NAPIT, who will be speaking in the Solar Power UK 2012 ,Green Solutions Seminar at the NEC in Birmingham, suggests that the Green Deal will offer an assurance to consumers while, at the same time, working towards Government’s own carbon emissions targets. “The Coalition Government has made significant commitments to the reduction of carbon emissions. But, in reality, the average consumer does not relate to this need. During a time of economic uncertainty, monthly outgoings are the main concern of every bill payer, and any opportunity to reduce bills during a time of recession is certainly more likely to resonate with the public,” Gould explained. “The Green Deal offers an opportunity to reduce carbon emissions and reduce bills, all without the need to invest large sums of money or increase personal debt. I have yet to meet someone that, once introduced to these facts, doesn’t want to ask more questions. Suddenly opportunities to be involved with energy efficiency measures and renewable technologies become a necessity as opposed to a matter of personal conscience. Taking control of ever increasing fuel bills will not only help consumers today but will also guard against the inevitability of rising fuel costs.” Meanwhile Andrew Padmore, the Chief Executive of Egnida – who will be speaking about the benefits of the Green Deal at the upcoming Solar Power UK 2012 exhibition this October – believes that once the scheme is launched, consumers will finally be able to benefit from energy saving measures without having to find the finance needed. “The Green Deal is a great opportunity for homeowners to save money on their energy bills by installing pay-as-you-save energy efficiency solutions such as insulation and heating controls,” Padmore explained. “The clever part of Green Deal is that no up front payment will be required from the homeowner. and the pay–as-you-save “loan” is attached to the property and not the person. If Green Deal delivers as planned then homeowners will have warmer homes and lower energy bills. The environment benefits and sustainable local jobs are also created, particularly for local SMEs.” Government’s aim is to make energy efficiency available to all, provided by trusted companies in order to offer consumer protection. This includes ensuring that robust standards are met; creating a market that balances consumer protection and burdens on businesses. Restrictions will be placed on ‘cold calling’, while protection such as 25-year warranties for wall insulation will be implemented. “The construction services industries should be very excited about this scheme. Although it won’t mean that every customer is suddenly going to have lots of work done straight away, it will provide a key incentive that is certain to catalyse a much greater demand for energy efficiency measures,” Gould continued. “The Green Deal is predicted to revolutionise the energy efficiency of over 15 million homes by 2020. With the prospect of over 200k+ boilers fitted each year under Green Deal and ECO, along with all the additional potential measures, this opportunity alone should be giving the consumer reason enough to learn more about how to get involved.” Source: Solar Power Portal

Solar and the Green Deal

This article first appeared in Solar Business Focus UK. To read more articles on UK solar market developments subscribe today! 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. This article will focus on why Government has developed this scheme and how will it will realistically affect the solar installation industry. Like much of the legislation coming out of the UK parliament, the origin of the Green Deal comes from Europe and you need to go back over a decade to the first Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) in December 2002 to see where this initiative originally kicked off. The EPBD was the first attempt at an EU-wide level to attempt to raise the consciousness of the need for energy efficiency in buildings through the requirements for mandatory energy performance certificates (EPCs). Unfortunately, the introduction of EPCs did not achieve the leap in the installation of improvements that the European Parliament had hoped, mainly because the requirement for a standardised approach to their production and patchy implementation at a member state level watered down the requirements to such an extent that, certainly in the UK, EPCs became a discredited requirement. In response to this poor take up, the European Parliament had a second attempt, and the EPBD recast was the result in 2010. This won’t be fully implemented until early next year, but has strengthened the EPC requirements by making them more property specific, with better recommendations for improvements and requiring EPCs to be at the front of any purchasing or letting marketing. You should progressively see the results of this over the next year. A further twist to the directive was the requirement for member state governments to introduce financing mechanisms for consumers to access improvements and hence, the Green Deal was born. At the same time the EU has also come to recognise that we are vulnerable to the energy suppliers, whether they are in the Middle East or Russia. This less of a problem to the UK, as we still have North Sea oil and gas, however these are of course the source of CO2 and the problems of climate change are also firmly on the EU agenda. 2050 carbon targets The European Commission published a roadmap to a low carbon Europe in early 2011, which is where the requirement to reduce CO2 by 80 percent by 2050, now enshrined in the UK’s Climate Change Act, was first set out. As buildings account for a large percentage of CO2 emissions, up to 47 percent for some countries through space and water heating requirements, the Commission determined that the EU should aim for nearly zero carbon emissions for all its 160 million existing properties. Of course, with the current near record low levels of new building in the UK, it is the existing properties that are the key to meeting the targets. The UK has around 26 million properties and up to 80 percent of the current stock will still exist in 2050 considering the current levels of building. A quick calculation shows that an existing property would need to be upgraded every 50 seconds in order to reach the levels required, so the pressure can only increase as the years roll by. The UK Government, whilst committing to the headline 80 percent reduction also put in place challenging interim targets of 34 percent by 2020 and 50 percent by 2025, ahead of the EU’s own targets. This is even more challenging because the EU sees properties as an easier target than the next largest emitter, transport, so the target for property is nearer 90 percent reduction. So how is this going to be achieved? This is where solar technology comes into its own. The first thrust of the Green Deal will be concentrating on improving the insulation in properties, so don’t expect a big surge in orders as the Green Deal kicks off. The UK has around 6 million solid wall properties, which are considered ‘hard to treat’ so this is where the emphasis will lie at the start, but getting to the 80 or 90 percent reduction required by law will require a lot more than insulation, as this will only improve efficiency so far. In order to get to the nearly zero levels of efficiency, renewables will be required for most existing properties. As a surveyor working for the RICS, one of my roles has been to look at the scenarios to meet the Climate Change Act requirements for property and from my research at a European level, it is clear that solar – whether solar PV or solar thermal – is the best solution to improve the energy efficiency at an individual property level. Whilst there are a number of other renewables solutions, many of them are either unfeasible or uneconomic when considered for a property. The gatekeepers to the Green Deal are the advisors or assessors who make the home visits at the start of the Green Deal process to look at the property, the energy bills and also the behaviours of the occupiers. This isn’t as sinister as it might sound. One of the key concerns Government has is that the Golden Rule is not met leading to large numbers of disgruntled home occupiers paying more for their energy bills, so the behaviour checks are to not only advise people how to improve their energy efficiency through the way the run their home, but to also check that they are not low energy users, who will need to be warned that their energy savings might not meet the financing. The advisors will carry out an EPC to check the rating of the existing house and also look at the suitability of the property for the various measures available because not all will be either suitable or meet the Golden Rule. Government has built in a number of safety factors into the calculations of the recommended measures, which discount the possible savings made to ensure the measures installed do provide sufficient savings to cover the financing. Whether solar measures will meet the Golden Rule will of course depends to a certain extent on the feed-in tariffs available, the relative cost of the panels and how these factor into the overall calculation. I suspect that at the early stages of the Green Deal, solar will be recommended but not as part of the Green Deal, as the emphasis will be on insulation. However, clients who want to future-proof their property will want to be able to consider installing all the possible measures. As time marches on and the pressure increases to meet the legislative targets, solar will no doubt feature much more strongly and Government will probably have to be more flexible in their approach to financing improvements. Conclusion The solar industry now needs to look at ways of providing information to advisors so that they are fully up to date with the legislation, such as FiTs, innovation and improvements in panels and suitable financial packages in order that advisors can provide the best advice to clients. Source - Solar Power Portal

DECC approves £7m loan to The Green Deal Finance Company

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.

Green Deal Providers successful in the Green Deal authorisation process will be able to access finance through TGDFC, expected to be available early 2013. This will enable them to offer low cost finance packages to consumers upgrading their homes under the Green Deal, effective this October.

All authorised Green Deal Providers, Assessors and Installers will have to display the new Green Deal Quality Mark to demonstrate they comply with the required Green Deal standards. This will be vital for protecting customers from any rogue traders. Only registered and authorised businesses will be able to use this mark.

Government is using this milestone to showcase its commitment to working with the private sector to provide finance at a low but sustainable cost to Green Deal customers. The Green Deal is also being considered as an early candidate for the use of infrastructure guarantees, Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, announced today. Infrastructure guarantees will provide guarantees for major UK infrastructure projects, with the potential to support up to £40 billion of investment.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said, “I’m delighted to announce a number of important developments for the Green Deal today. The opening of the Green Deal register will enable businesses to start becoming Green Deal authorised and the Green Deal Quality Mark will show they have met our standards. Crucially, this will protect consumers, who will know that anyone displaying the Quality Mark has been through the required process to become authorised.

“The loan we have agreed with The Green Deal Finance Company will help them to undertake essential development and be ready to offer finance to Green Deal Providers in early 2013.”

Businesses wishing to become Green Deal Providers can apply directly online to become authorised, while accredited certification bodies will be able to submit the details of Assessors and Installers to be authorised.

New guidance is available on the DECC website which clearly explains what is required to get the Green Deal Quality Mark and to become an authorised Provider. This complements existing guidance setting out how to become an authorised Assessor or Installer.

Government assures that the Green Deal will open up the energy efficiency market, empowering new players, including small and medium sized businesses, to enter and innovate. The Green Deal will initially cover 45 different improvements for domestic and non-domestic buildings and is expected to support up to 60,000 jobs in the insulation sector alone by 2015.

Source - Solar Power Portal

Local authorities required to publish energy efficiency plans

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).

Government is turning to local authorities to drive energy efficiency awareness and help lower the nation’s energy consumption from a local level. The guidance will ask local authorities to identify the most practicable and cost-effective solutions to dramatically reduce energy wastage for all residential accommodation within the authority’s area.   

The Department of Energy and Climate Change hopes that the upcoming Green Deal will help local authorities reach their targets by allowing residents to access a raft of energy efficiency measures at no upfront cost.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said: “Local authorities have a vital role to play in improving the energy efficiency of residential homes in their areas, and helping us meet our ambitious energy targets.

“This new robust guidance will support and encourage all local authorities to realise the significant benefits of upgrading homes. The Green Deal will be a fantastic tool to help with this, and I look forward to hearing how local authorities are using it to enable people to save energy and money.”

The new HECA guidance will also encourage local authorities to approach key local partners, such as social housing providers and community organisations, to encourage them to support the energy efficiency plans. Under the new guidelines, local authorities will have to report back on their progress in implementing their measures every two years. 

Source - Solar Power Portal

Green Deal legislation passed by the House of Lords

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.

According to DECC: “In our consultation response, we confirmed Government’s intention to introduce the Green Deal through supporting a responsible and controlled approach with full national systems testing, this is to ensure the market has the opportunity to build steadily.”

DECC has also confirmed that, from August 8, the Green Deal Oversight and Registration Body will begin registering assessors, providers and installers. The department will be publishing ‘Green Deal Provider Authorisation Guidance’ ahead of the registration process.

Authorised and accredited Green Deal assessors will begin to operate from October this year, so that consumers will be able to complete a Green Deal Plan at the end of January 2013 – when DECC predicts the relevant parts of the framework regulations will come into effect.

DECC continues: “Green Deal authorised installers will be able to complete work for consumers prior to the end of January if paid for upfront or wholly supported by the Energy Company Obligation. We expect the number of Green Deal offers available to build from there as more providers enter the market.”

Source, Solar Power Portal 

Green Deal receives final Parliamentary approvals

Legislation for the Green Deal, the Coalition’s flagship environmental policy, has received final Parliamentary approvals. The ambitious environmental scheme hopes to dramatically reduce the UK’s total greenhouse emissions by tackling the nation’s inefficient housing stock which currently accounts for 43 percent of total UK emissions.

The Green Deal programme will allow bill payers to undertake energy efficiency improvements at no extra cost. To fund the range of measures supported by the Green Deal loans will be taken out and repaid under the ‘Golden Rule’; the expected financial savings must be equal to or greater than the costs attached to the energy bill.

The Guardian has revealed that Government is expecting loans taken out under the scheme to be charged at an interest rate of 7.5 percent. Responding to the news, Caroline Flint, Labour’s Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary, has called on Government to work harder to make the Green Deal fairer for consumers. Flint contests that repayment charges could end up more than doubling the cost of original energy efficiency measures. Labour calculates that, with an interest rate of 7.5 percent, a £10,000 Green Deal loan repaid over 25 years would see the consumer having to pay back £22,000 - more than double what they initially borrowed.

Flint added: "If it’s done properly, a pay-as-you-save energy efficiency scheme could cut carbon emissions, create jobs and lower bills for families. But the Green Deal must be a good deal for consumers. The public want a simple and affordable scheme so they can improve their home and cut their energy bills.

“It would be completely unfair if the public are forced to pay hefty penalties for doing the right thing and trying to repay their loans as soon as they can. The Government must come clean about what interest rates will be charged on the Green Deal so hard-pressed bill payers know it will save them money. To make the Green Deal work, ministers should use the Green Investment Bank to provide Green Deal finance at an affordable rate for families and businesses."

The scheme will allow consumers to borrow up to £10,000 to finance energy efficiency improvements to a property. Speaking to the Guardian, Greg Barker, the Minister for Energy and Climate Change, explained how he hoped £300 million worth of funding designated to support the scheme from the newly-established Green Investment Bank would allow lower interest rates than the expected 6-8 percent.

A DECC spokesperson also defended the interest rate adding: "DECC’s understanding from commercial organisations, such as the Green Deal Finance Company (TGDFC), is that the cost of finance will be around 6-8 percent, which for unsecured lending is a highly competitive rate, far lower than other forms of commercial finance. This compares very well for those on the lowest incomes that often have poor credit ratings and can often only access loans at high, punitive rates. The Green Deal will not be based on an individual's credit rating as it is linked to the property not the occupants."

The Green Deal is expected to launch in October this year. Currently, DECC is touring the nation with a Green Deal Supply Chain Roadshow to help those interested in getting involved with the scheme find out more about the opportunities available.

Source - Solar Power Portal

SMEs will now gain fair access to the Green Deal

Parity Projects is now in the final stages of launching a project designed to open up Government’s upcoming Green Deal to organisations of all sizes. The Green Deal Conduit will build a network of small and medium sized organisations involved in the assessment and refurbishment buildings throughout the UK. To date SMEs have voiced concerns that the scheme will only benefit larger companies.

The initiative, which is expected to be owned by its members, is backed by a range of professional institutions and trade associations which combined represent almost 100,000 SME and micro businesses in the UK. These organisations will ensure their members have fair access to the Green Deal scheme without ending up at the tail end of the supply chain.

Those involved include the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), National Federation of Builders (NFB), Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Building & Engineering Services Association (B&ES), The Renewable Energy Sector, The Electrical Contractors' Association (ECA), Institute for Sustainability (IfS), Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the British Institute for Interior Design (BIID).

Russell Smith, Managing Director of Parity Projects said, “A strong presence for smaller companies in the energy-focussed refurbishment market is desirable for two key reasons; firstly, homeowners will desire more than just a choice of high street brands. There are excellent, locally-focussed advisers and contractors that will be more preferred and trusted by some of the market.

“Secondly, smaller companies need to protect their existing refurbishment market which may be eaten into if some of their usual work can be funded by others. If there is no deliberate effort by smaller companies to access the Green Deal, they and homeowners will both lose out.”

Members of the Conduit will work independently but within a framework which allows members to work with each other and for a lead organisation. All providers involved will need to meet all Green Deal requirements.

“There are many critics of the Green Deal, and most of them expect the Government to be dumping work in the industry’s lap. The construction industry has always had a tendency to wait for work to come to it. In this case we have a new mechanism to drive change and the opportunity is really limited by our imaginations. The Green Deal Conduit has already captured the imaginations of many businesses around the country,” added Smith.

The Conduit has already seen interest from approximately 200 small construction practitioners across the UK however the group is now looking to attract others who want access to the Green Deal including contractors, energy assessors, architects, surveyors, builders’ merchants and community groups.

“We have spoken with DECC and they are excited by the prospects of the model but it will need genuine Government support to take it to the next level. As it ticks so many boxes such as building a local economy, creating a market for apprentices and providing a mechanism for community groups to drive change in their areas whilst minimising carbon dioxide emissions we hope Government do find a way to help it grow.

“The big question now is which Green Deal Providers are really serious about wanting to use smaller practitioners and if they are they will want to get in touch and start dialogue.”

Paul Reeve, Head of Business Policy and Practice and the Electrical Contractors’ Association, said: “Small businesses will not only provide more choice, but also the service flexibility and innovation that will encourage a much broader range of customers to engage with the Green Deal. We fully support the Green Deal Conduit.”

Meanwhile Anna Scott-Marshall, Head of External Affairs at RIBA said: “The Green Deal should be accessible to all sizes of business. If small businesses struggle to access the Green Deal market this may impact on those who currently undertake building renovation work. We must create a competitive market to respond to the challenge of renovating our national housing stock to be more energy efficient. The Green Deal Conduit is a way of addressing this concern.”

“The Green Deal not only represents a huge opportunity to increase the efficiency of our homes and buildings but also to stimulate the construction sector during these difficult economic times. Yet with the vast majority of construction firms being SMEs, there is an urgent need to ensure smaller builders can access the Green Deal and benefit from the new economic opportunities it has to offer. The FSB believes Green Deal Conduit offers the means for small firms to access the Green Deal and let customers choose their local builder for their Green Deal work,” David Caro, Chair of the Federation of Small Businesses Environment and Energy Committee, concluded.

Source - Solar Power Portal

Gemserv appointed as Green Deal oversight body

The Department of Energy and Climate Change has announced that multi service provider, Gemserv, will run the new Green Deal oversight body. The company will be responsible for the registration of assessors, installers and providers as well monitoring compliance with the Code of Practice.  

The department said that: “Gemserv, with their partners REAL, has been chosen to provide these services on behalf of DECC for the next three years following an open competition. Both Germserv and REAL currently operate the MCS scheme for DECC so are well acquainted with the challenges and requirements involved in operating a scheme of this nature.”

The service is set to start in August ahead of the planned introduction of the Green Deal later this year.

Importantly, DECC has announced that there will no longer be any fees for assessors, installers and providers who wish to get involved in the scheme. The department will foot the bill for the registration and oversight service for the first two years of the energy efficiency scheme, with the intention of moving to a fee-based approach once the Green Deal has become established.

Reacting to the news, Energy and Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker, said: “We need to make sure all the Green Deal assessors, installers and providers get our stamp of approval to ensure the highest level of consumer protection for householders and businesses under this scheme. I am delighted that Gemserv has risen to the challenge and is going to take on this very important role.

“No registration fees for the first two years will remove burdensome admin costs at a time when many can least afford them, helping encourage organisations to get onboard and offering more freedom of choice for consumers.”

David Thorne CEO of Gemserv said: “We are delighted to have been appointed as the Green Deal Oversight and Registration Body and are looking forward to playing a central role in implementing and developing this ground breaking programme.

“Gemserv will be able to draw on our strong experience of delivering the MCS scheme, maximising the synergies, and we hope to begin discussions shortly with key industry participants to ensure we are prepared for the Green Deal’s launch. We are working closely with our delivery partner REAL utilising their extensive consumer protection experience.”

In addition, to the appointment of an oversight body, the department has announced that Ombudsman Services Ltd will become the provider of the Green Deal Ombudsman and Investigation Service. This will remain a free service that is designed to help alleviate disagreements between customers and Green Deal providers.  

The department said: “The Ombudsman will investigate complaints and determine redress for consumers. Depending on the type of complaint, following an investigation, the Ombudsman will refer cases to the Secretary of State for determining redress or imposing sanctions.”

Chief Ombudsman Lewis Shand Smith said: “The Green Deal is a new concept to householders. Consumers taking up the Green Deal can be confident that if something goes wrong they will have easy access to independent and effective redress.

“We already provide the ombudsman service for the energy (supply and network) industry and its customers, to it makes sense for complaints about Green Deal providers to come to us. We’re looking forward to working with DECC on the details of the scheme.”

This new service will be up and running by October 2012 and is an important part of the Government’s approach to assuring consumer protection under the Green Deal.

Source: Solar Power Portal

Prepare for launch: DECC seeks to seal the Green Deal

Following the consideration of more than 600 responses to the consultation on the Green Deal and ECO, Government has today set out secondary Green Deal legislation. The changes to the original proposals include measures to strengthen consumer protection, reduce industry burdens, and to implement the Energy Company Obligation (ECO).

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) plans to cement the Green Deal and ECO rules by October this year, including, in legislation to be laid later this week, ensuring support worth around £1.3 billion a year to deliver energy efficiency and heating measures across Great Britain.

Government’s aim is to increase the energy efficiency of residential and business buildings across the UK.

Announcing the news the Energy Secretary and Climate Change Secretary, Edward Davey, said: “Today I have published the Government’s detailed plans along with legislation that will allow the industry to bring the Green Deal into existence. The Green Deal will play a huge role in improving the energy efficiency of our homes and businesses, with ECO making sure that the most vulnerable homes benefit too.

“We have listened very carefully to what industry, consumer groups, and other organisations have told us. Broad support for a managed, tested and careful introduction of the Green Deal fits exactly with our objective to provide an excellent customer experience from day one and a market where a range of new players can readily participate.

“I am determined to make sure that, in addition to creating huge opportunities for Green Deal providers and businesses along with thousands of new jobs, this new market in energy efficiency will deliver the very best deal for consumers.”

What’s new?

One of the largest concerns surrounding the rollout of the Green Deal was the lack of consumer protection and the burden the policy would place on businesses. DECC’s revised version of the policy will place restrictions on ‘cold calling’ and implement new rules requiring Green Deal Assessors to declare any commission they might be receiving for carrying out an assessment and any ties to Green Deal Providers.

There will also be a change to the original warranties proposal. The latest version eases the requirements on businesses to hold warranties for the length of a Green Deal Plan while maintaining robust minimum standards of protection for consumers.

Changes have also been made to the ECO to include allow more hard-to-treat cavity walls to qualify for support, and to provide specific support for low income and rural areas. An estimated technical potential of around 2.8 million hard-to-treat cavity wall properties will now be eligible under the ECO.

The Green Deal framework will consist of assessors, installers and Green Deal Providers, all of which should be ready to start work in the autumn of this year. From August accredited certification bodies will be able to submit applications to register with the Green Deal Registration and Oversight Body, and will then be able to register assessors and installers as ‘Green Deal Approved’. Potential Green Deal Providers will be also able to apply for approval.

Today’s announcement also includes a final impact assessment and associated research, and confirms the appointment of Ofgem to be the ECO Administrator. Government will shortly announce the contract awards for the Green Deal Registration and Oversight Body and the Green Deal Ombudsman and Investigation Service function.

In response to the news Garry Worthington, Head of Green Deal at Climate Energy, said: “This response has been greatly anticipated, and we expect it to answer some of the questions surrounding the future of energy efficiency in the UK and will help us to further progress with our plans to become a Green Deal provider, as well as helping local authorities and regional organisations move ahead in terms of designing and implementing regional and local schemes.

“The improvements to the consumer protection elements of Green Deal are particularly welcomed.  These new safeguards, along with the plans to calculate savings on a daily rather than annual basis, will go a long way in encouraging homeowner and tenants to take advantage of the finance available for energy efficiency improvements. 

“However, we are disappointed that the Government remains undecided about its £200m fund to kick-start the scheme.  We think the current plans to use this purely as a cash-back incentive over the next two years are mis-guided and that could be used much more creatively to support regional schemes, local innovations, jobs, communities and delivery to give take-up an initial boost.  We would also urge DECC to reconsider its support around promoting Green Deal and creating awareness of the scheme.”

Rhian Kelly, CBI Director for Business Environment policy, said: “Having more details on how the Green Deal will operate on a practical level is an important step for a scheme that has the very real potential to cut costs for consumers and businesses in the long run, and help generate business investment and jobs.

“However, there is still plenty of work to do. With the launch of the Green Deal expected towards the end of the year, Government needs to move quickly to put everything in place. It must ensure that businesses who want to get involved are in the best position to do so and put the right policies in place to stimulate consumer demand.”

Source - Solar Power Portal