Renewable Energy Assurance Ltd.
Registered in England and Wales | Company No. 05720606 | 91 Waterloo Road, London SE1 8RT
Email sent to all solar PV installers by MCS on 15.02.2012
I am writing to inform you of an update to the MCS Installer Standards, and also of the work being done to ensure compliance – particularly in these busy times caused by changes to the Government’s Feed-in Tariff scheme.
MIS 3002, the solar PV installation standard, has been updated to make even clearer that creating an MCS certificate before the system has been fully installed and commissioned is contrary to MCS rules,and will therefore make you liable to an investigation by your Certification Body.
MIS 3002 v2.1 has now been published on the MCS website at the link below:
http://www.microgenerationcertification.org/installers/installers/installer-standards
Please pay particular attention to Section 6: Handover Requirements.
MCS takes very seriously its role in protecting the integrity of the FIT Scheme. To that end, we have been working closely with the Certification Bodies, Ofgem, REAL Assurance, and others to ensure all suspicious activity is fully investigated. By analysing trends in installation company activity levels, as well as acting on tip-offs received, MCS has been able to conduct targeted inspections of several thousand installations to ensure that the work was completed, as claimed, before 12th December. Where fraudulent activity has been identified, the customer is losing out on the higher rate of FIT and the installation company is being audited by their Certification Body. The outcome could not only see installation companies lose their MCS certification, but we will also where appropriate refer such cases of fraud to the authorities for prosecution.
This exercise will continue in the run-up to and the weeks following the 3rd March deadline.
If you receive information regarding potential fraudulent MCS certificates please do not hesitate to contact the MCS Helpdesk to report these.
Excerpt from Government Executive Summary
1. The Government’s decision on the new tariffs for solar PV, following the consultation published last October, was announced on 19 January 2012.2 Subject to the parliamentary process required by the Energy Act 2008, the licence modifications necessary to implement the new tariffs will come into force on or before 3 March 2012, and will apply the new tariffs from 1 April 2012 to any new solar PV installation with an eligibility date on or after 3 March 2012. We cannot give certainty for installations with an eligibility date on or after the proposed 12 December 2011 reference date, and before 3 March 2012, due to the outstanding legal action. However, if the tariffs for those installations are reduced, they will receive tariffs not lower than those proposed in the phase 1 consultation.
2. We have decided to proceed with an energy efficiency requirement for new solar PV installations with an eligibility date on or after 1 April 2012, as a pre-requisite of eligibility for the standard solar PV tariff rates. This will mean that new FITs applications for solar PV will need to demonstrate that the building to which the solar PV installation is attached or wired to provide electricity has an Energy Performance Certificate rating of Level D or above. This specific requirement is a change from the original two options considered, taking into account consultation responses, but with the same general intent.
3. In addition, we have decided to proceed with multi-installation tariff rates which will apply to all new solar PV installations with an eligibility date on or after 1 April 2012 where the FIT generator or the nominated recipient for FIT payments receives FITs income from more than twenty five solar PV installations, located on different sites. This is also a change to the original proposal, under which any FIT generator or nominated recipient with more than one installation would have received the multi-installation tariff. The Phase 2A consultation document, which is also published today, sets out proposals for additional future changes to the application of the new multi-installation tariff rates.
Tariff changes
1. As confirmed on 19 January 2012, the changes proposed in the Consultation on 31 October 2011 will be made to the generation tariff levels for all installations with an eligibility date on or after 3 March 2012.
Capacity |
Current tariff |
New tariff |
<4kW (retrofit) |
43.3 |
21.0 |
>4-10kW |
37.8 |
16.8 |
>10-50kW |
32.9 |
15.2 |
>50-100kW |
19 |
12.9 |
>100-150kW |
19 |
12.9 |
>150-250kW |
15 |
12.9 |
>250kW-5MW |
8.5 |
8.9* |
stand alone |
8.5 |
8.9* |
* These are the current tariffs which were not changed through the phase 1 consultation but which, like all other current tariffs (but not the new tariffs) will be adjusted in line with the Retail Price Index from 1 April 2012 to the levels set out in the table.
Proposed “reference date”
1. The Government’s proposal to apply new tariffs for solar PV from 1 April 2012 to all new installations with an eligibility date on or after an earlier ”reference date” (which we proposed should be 12 December 2011) is the subject of a judicial review.5 The Government is seeking permission to appeal to the Supreme Court, following a decision by the Court of Appeal on 25 January 2012. Pending the outcome of that process, no decision has yet been taken on the generation tariffs for solar PV installations with an eligibility date on or after the proposed 12 December 2011 proposed reference date and before 3 March 2012.
2. For the avoidance of doubt, if the Government wins an appeal to the Supreme Court, we reserve the right to stand by our original proposal. This means the Government could make further licence modifications in future which would reduce the generation tariffs in respect of electricity generated from the date those licence modifications are made, for some or all installations with an eligibility date on or after 12 December 2011 and before 3 March 2012. This would be subject to the Parliamentary procedure in the Energy Act 2008.
3. However, in the event that the Government wins an appeal, we can confirm that the tariffs for which those generators will be eligible will be no lower than the new tariffs set out in the third column of the above table. They will also continue to receive the current, higher tariff for electricity they generate until the Government has made new modifications to the FIT payment rate table in Annex 2 to Condition 33 of the Standard Conditions of Electricity Supply Licences. The timing of any change will depend on the length of the appeal process to the Supreme Court and will be subject to the Parliamentary process set out in the Energy Act 2008.
Text of email sent to all solar PV members
On 25 January 2012 the Government lost its appeal against the Court ruling in December that its proposals to change the FiT tariff rates for solar PV were unlawful. However, the Government is now seeking leave to appeal to the higher level – the Supreme Court. They have 28 days from the judgment on 25 January 2012 to apply. It is not known whether the Government will be granted leave to appeal nor how long it will take for them to find out.
This means that the Government cannot legislate to apply new tariffs from 1 April 2012 to installations that took place between 12 December 2011 and before 2 March 2012. The Government did however lay legislation to reduce the tariff for new installations in Parliament on 19 January 2012. It will come into effect on 3 March 2012 and will apply to all installations with an eligibility date on or after this date. What this means is that any installation that takes place between 3 and 31 March will receive 43.3p/kWh in respect of generation until 31 March 2012 and 21p in respect of generation after 1 April 2012.
Until the outcome of the appeal is known, the Government cannot provide any certainty to consumers with installations that take place between 12 December 2011 and 2 March 2012. However, the Government has confirmed that these consumers will not receive a tariff lower than 21p (index-linked by RPI) for 25 years.
I appreciate that this is a difficult and uncertain time for all solar PV installers. Nonetheless, it is essential at this time that you only sell solar PV on the basis that, for an installation that takes place between 12 December 2011 and 2 March 2012, a consumer will get 43.3p/kWh for generation that takes place before 31 March 2012 and 21p for generation that takes place thereafter. It might be that a consumer who installs between these dates will end up getting 43.3p/kWh for the whole 25 years but this is far from certain at the moment and this expectation must not be the basis for any sale.
Please be aware that informing consumers they will definitely receive 43.3p for 25 years is mis-selling and it is a breach of the REAL Consumer Code. You must not agree a contract with a consumer on this basis. Please note that it is not acceptable to have a small print notice qualifying a misleading or incorrect claim. Should one of your consumers rely on receiving 43.3p/kWh for 25 years, but in the end does not, your company could end up refunding them the difference.
I have received a number of examples of misleading advertising. The Non-Compliance Panel has asked to receive a report at the end of March of any company putting out misleading advertising or otherwise seeking to exploit this time of uncertainty by pressurising consumers into signing contracts. I am currently compiling this report and will pass it to the Panel with details of the companies concerned.
For guidance on the recent Court of Appeal ruling regarding the Feed-in Tariff please download this useful DECC briefing document which explains the outcome of the judicial review appeal. We will be posting updates as and when they occur on the news section of our website.
Text of email sent to all solar PV members
This guidance was originally uploaded on Wednesday 2 November 2011 and is available for reference below.
The Government today published proposals to introduce new Feed-in Tariff rates for PV systems with a total installed capacity of 250 kW or less. The Government is proposing that these tariffs are implemented from 1 April 2012 but apply to all solar PV installations with an eligibility date of on or after 12 December 2011.
The eligibility date is the date on which the FITs licensee receives the consumer’s request for FiT registration of a commissioned installation, which must include a valid MCS certificate. DECC will be recommending that consumers use special delivery so they have proof that their licensee has received their application and MCS certificate prior to the reference date.
These proposals are set out in a consultation document. The consultation will run from today, ending on 23 December 2011. Instructions for responding to it are contained in the consultation document.
The Government is proposing the following rates for solar PV from 1 April 2012:
| up to 4 kW | 21p/kWh |
| 4 – 10 kW | 16.8p/kWh |
| 10 – 50 kW | 15.2p/kWh |
| 50 – 250 kW | 12.9p/kWh |
An important element of the proposals is the inclusion of the 12 December 2011 reference date. This would mean that any new solar PV installations with an eligibility date on or after 12 December 2011 will receive the current tariff rate in respect of generation up to 31 March 2012, but in respect of generation from 1 April 2012 they will receive the new, lower tariff rate.
The Government’s consultation also includes proposals for a new energy efficiency requirement for FITs for solar PV and new multi-installation tariff rates for aggregated solar PV, including systems installed as part of free solar PV schemes. It is proposed that both these changes will apply to new PV installations with an eligibility date of on or after 1 April 2012. The export premium remains at 3.1p/kWh.
Final decisions following the consultation are expected to be announced by early February following the end of the consultation. Until then, for the purposes of your business and ensuring that your customers are able to make properly informed decisions, you should assume there is likelihood that proposals will be adopted in full in their current form.
The next four months of transition will be a challenging time for us all. The REAL Assurance Scheme will work with you to help manage the transition in any way we can. The Government is making available information for installers and consumers through the Energy Saving Trust website and Helpdesk (0800 512 012). Your MCS certification body and the MCS Helpdesk (020 7090 1082) will also be on hand to assist you to manage the transition.
We need you to play your part in ensuring that all consumers are given the correct information about what the Government is proposing and about how it will affect them. The attached document has been prepared by DECC to explain to consumers what they need to know about the proposed changes. We strongly suggest you provide this factsheet to consumers and give them a chance to read it carefully before they sign a contract. You must ensure that, going forward, you do not sign a contract with a consumer for solar PV without first making him or her fully aware of the impact the new tariffs will have.
To achieve this effectively you will need to brief all your consumer-facing staff and in particular any sales representatives you employ or who work on your behalf. You will also need to review as a matter of urgency all your printed materials and your website. We will treat any reports of mis-selling very seriously indeed.
The Government has explained that 12 December is 6 weeks from the date the consultation was launched. This is to allow those who have already paid a deposit a reasonable period to have their installation completed, and to apply for the Feed-in Tariff. You should therefore do all you can to ensure that existing installation dates are honoured; and, where these are scheduled for after the beginning of December, to bring them forward if you can.
In particular, please be aware that, in line with the Code:
Further Information
Renewable Energy Assurance Ltd.
Registered in England and Wales | Company No. 05720606 | 91 Waterloo Road, London SE1 8RT