News: July 2009

The Low Carbon Transition Plan has been welcomed by one of the UKs leading boiler and renewables manufacturers, but Worcester, Bosch Group has still warned that there must be more ambition for its renewable strategy.

The government's low carbon plan aims to cut emissions by 34% by 2020 and 80% by 2050. The plans also contain a Pay As You Save scheme for home insulation.
The UK Renewable Energy Strategy, which forms part of the plan, contains a proposal for 12% of heat generated in the UK to come from renewables by 2020, with an emphasis on biomass, biogas, solar and heat pumps in homes, business and communities across the UK.

Neil Schofield, head of sustainable development at Worcester Bosch, said: "There is much to be commended in the government''s proposals, not least the plan to have 12% of domestic heat generated by renewable by 2020. However, we remain concerned that the government continues to be almost exclusively focused on renewable electricity generation, with the heat lobby again overlooked.

"It is very telling that in the 227 pages of the Renewable Energy Strategy, there is not one photo of a heat generating technology or a single mention of a heating installer."
In particular, Schofield believes that an opportunity has been missed to encourage mass uptake of renewable technologies, by providing a Pay As You Save option for renewables.

He said: "Pay As You Save is an excellent idea, but should have been extended to provide a much needed boost in renewable technology uptake. The key issue we face at the moment is cost, in that renewables, such as solar, is a big financial commitment and manufacturers cannot reduce their prices unless there is volume uptake.

“In Portugal, at the moment, there is an innovative scheme, involving a consortium of government, banks, utility companies and manufacturers, which enables consumers to install solar panels with no upfront capital outlay with repayments made to the banks on the basis of reductions in their energy bills. Only a similar sort of scheme in the UK will encourage mass uptake.”