Smart Export Guarantee offers tariffs for domestic solar

Under the government's Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), electricity suppliers which have more than 150 000 customers will be required to offer at least one tariff for power exported to the grid from renewables smaller than 5 MW, though smaller suppliers are not excluded from offering tariffs too. Households that have had solar PV installed since 1 April 2019 will have the choice of over 14 suppliers, including Bulb and Octopus Energy.

The SEG replaces the Export Tariff, which was scrapped in April 2019 along with the Generation Tariff under the government's Feed-In Tariff scheme. The Export Tariff provided a fixed rate of 5.2p per kWh of power exported to the grid. Households, small businesses and community organisations which have had solar installed since April 2019 have had no legally guaranteed way to receive payment for power exported to the grid, which means some will have been providing power back to the grid for free.

In order to be eligible for a tariff under the SEG, the solar installation must be certified by an approved scheme, such as the Microgeneration Certification Scheme, which ensures that high installation standards are followed. Households and organisations will also require a smart meter in order to take accurate export readings.

Suppliers will be required to offer tariffs with rates above 0p/kWh. The STA, as part of its #Fair4Solar campaign, called on government to guarantee a fair rate for small-scale solar power exports, and will be keeping a close eye on the market. As will Ofgem, which is tasked with monitoring competitiveness and intervening should this fail to materialise. All SEG-compliant tariffs can be found listed on the STA's SEG League Table.

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/solar/03012020/smart-export-guarantee-offers-tariffs-for-domestic-solar/