It is a busy time for households which keep an eye on the latest energy efficiency news. Hot on the heels of the Government's plans to roll out smart meters to all GB households comes the announcement of the Green Deal.
The Green Deal is the Government’s latest initiative to drive energy efficiency, this time focussing not on the end-user (as in the rollout of smart meters), but instead on the homes and buildings in which we live. In the Government’s own words, the Green Deal is “a framework to enable private firms to offer consumers energy efficiency improvements to their homes, community spaces and businesses at no upfront cost, and recoup payments through a charge in instalments on the energy bill”.
Recognising this shift in attention to the building itself, and in a change to existing energy finance initiatives, the outstanding balance for any improvement works completed stays with the property with the new homeowner picking up the remaining cost through their energy bills.
Given this approach, the Government is clearly supporting the need to improve our ailing housing stock and invest heavily in measures to improve our energy efficiency such as loft and cavity wall insulation. However, whilst the Green Deal also supports the more expensive measures such as solid wall insulation, a “golden rule” does exist - the expected financial savings must be greater than the cost incurred. For now however, more sophisticated measures such as micro-generation and combined heat and power initiatives fall outside of the deal, remaining under the auspices of the Renewable Heat Incentive and Feed In Tariff scheme.
Sceptics may see this as the coalition Government’s attempts to ride the latest energy fads, with others viewing this as an honest attempt to deliver energy saving benefits whilst stimulating recovery in an economy still teetering on the edge of a much cited double dip. However, what is clear is that this is as an attempt to build upon the momentum developed by the rollout of smart metering, and to support initiatives which offer tangible energy saving benefits. Smart metering will bring with it a bombardment of messages focussed at changing customer behaviour – the Green Deal, with its focus on the property, offers a different channel by which the Government’s energy agenda can be realised.
What is clear is whether or not this really is a “green” deal, or just a “bad” deal, only time will tell….
For more information on the Green Deal, visit: http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/green_deal/green_deal.aspx
For more information on Baringa’s offerings for the Low Carbon Economy, see: http://www.baringa.com/our_industries/energy_and_utilities/smart/
Posted by: David Wing on September 12th 2011
