Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
The tariffs set by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) have been welcomed by plumbers merchant Plumb Center.
The scheme allows people with biomass boilers, ground and air source heat pumps and solar thermal, to get money back from the Government in return for generating their own heat energy in a low impact way.
The tariffs have been set at:
As part of the domestic RHI, householders will need to have a Green Deal Assessment to qualify and will have to meet minimum loft insulation (250mm) and cavity wall insulation requirements. All installations must be carried out by an MCS accredited installer.
Plumb Center’s head of sustainability Tim Pollard says: “Today’s news on the domestic RHI is fantastic. It’s been a long time coming, but the tariffs are encouraging and it’s a big step in the right direction; this is a great start to the longer journey.
“Renewable energy systems are extremely impressive pieces of kit. They’re highly efficient, clean and will be important for the government to meet their decarbonisation targets.
“The RHI tariffs give people an added incentive to install renewables, because they can make some extra cash as a reward for generating their own heat energy, and who wouldn’t want that?
“The link between the RHI and Green Deal is exciting. There’s no point fitting renewables (or any heating system) in homes that are poorly insulated because the heat will just escape out of the walls or the ceiling, so I’m happy a Green Deal assessment and minimum insulation requirements are needed.
“People can also combine Green Deal with the RHI, so it’s possible to get Green Deal finance to buy a ground source heat pump and claim the tariff money for the energy you produce. This makes renewables more affordable than ever.”
