Scotland’s photo voltaic sector and the Scottish Authorities’s net-zero targets are at severe danger if photo voltaic just isn’t reinstated to the House Vitality Scotland (HES) grant and mortgage scheme, based on warnings from commerce teams within the building and renewables sectors.
The Scottish Authorities not too long ago opted to discontinue funding for photo voltaic photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage below the scheme, with the impact, as Scottish Renewables put it, of “undermining Scotland’s photo voltaic sector and eradicating any incentive for house owners to put money into photo voltaic PV”.
Helen Melone, Head of Warmth and Photo voltaic at Scottish Renewables, stated:
“The HES grant and mortgage scheme has been widespread with Scotland’s photo voltaic provide chain serving to to ship the intensive pipeline of initiatives it’s at the moment working by.
“Home photo voltaic is vastly widespread in Scotland and there’s a lengthy ready record for installations. Nevertheless, with no incentive for home rooftop photo voltaic, this work will inevitably dry up and depart these firms with unsure futures.
“Greater than 60,000 households have already got photo voltaic panels and we’d like extra put in throughout the nation on houses, companies and public buildings to guard shoppers from the excessive electrical energy costs the UK at the moment faces and to sort out local weather change.
“It’s subsequently important that restricted public spending is invested the place it will probably make the largest affect on reducing carbon emissions.
“We urge the Scottish Authorities to rethink its determination to take away home photo voltaic from its grant and mortgage scheme and as a substitute improve funding to make sure all kinds of power effectivity, clear warmth, photo voltaic and power storage techniques can be found to all households.”
Additionally commenting on the transfer, Alan Wilson, Chair of the Building Business Collective Voice (CICV), a coalition of 29 skilled and commerce our bodies inside the UK building sector, stated: “Photo voltaic PV and battery storage usually are not nearly clear power; they characterize a dedication to long-term financial stability and environmental stewardship. Their exclusion from funding alerts a worrying shift in coverage that may undoubtedly discourage funding and innovation in Scotland’s renewable sector.
“A steady coverage setting is crucial for companies to commit sources to growing, putting in and sustaining low-carbon applied sciences. The present coverage fluctuation dangers stalling Scotland’s progress in the direction of its environmental objectives and shaking the boldness of market buyers and the general public alike.
“It’s going to additionally considerably have an effect on the coaching and expertise growth companies inside the renewable sector undertake. After quite a few false begins with renewable know-how funding, installers are more and more cautious of committing to coaching when help is so steadily withdrawn. Companies want readability and certainty to take a position successfully, and this unpredictability severely hampers their potential to take action.
“This determination additionally immediately and profoundly impacts Scottish households, particularly these in additional susceptible financial positions. With out monetary help, the preliminary value of transitioning to renewable power sources turns into prohibitive for a lot of. This not solely slows down particular person progress in the direction of power independence but additionally widens the socioeconomic divide in entry to scrub know-how. Guaranteeing all communities can take part and profit from Scotland’s power transition is essential for its general success and social fairness.
“Transferring ahead, we should guarantee continuity and consistency in our method to grasp our low-carbon ambitions totally. The abrupt finish to funding these essential applied sciences may undermine the belief shoppers and {the marketplace} has in all of the nation’s low-carbon transition methods. As all the time, we advocate dialogue to discover a method ahead slightly than undermining Scotland’s sustainable future.”
The Scottish Authorities has an ambition to extend photo voltaic deployment from 0.5GW of capability to between 4GW-6GW by 2030. To assist obtain these targets, Scottish Renewableshas urged the Scottish Authorities to:
- Enhance funding obtainable within the HES grant and mortgage scheme by £20 million – reinstating photo voltaic PV and power storage techniques.
- Proceed to broaden the dimensions and scale of curiosity free mortgage and grant programmes for power effectivity measures, together with photo voltaic power, and warmth pump installations, significantly for smaller properties, rural and island fuel-poor households.
