Feed-in Tariff

Financial incentives for installing new wind turbines will be increased from April 2010. Following the recent Energy Act (2008) the UK Government plan to implement a new ‘feed-in tariff’ initiative designed to encourage the use of renewable energy among UK property owners and small businesses, which is great news for anyone thinking about installing a Gaia Wind Turbine. In effect, the tariff will provide a 17.7p/unit increase from the existing incentive and will result in a significant increase in earning potential for Gaia-Wind turbine owners.

Moderate Wind

The UK has some of the windiest sites in Europe, ideal locations for installing a wind turbine. However the majority of properties that would benefit from a small wind turbine are rarely located in coastal areas or hilltops that provide ‘ideal’ conditions. This is precisely why the Gaia Wind Turbine has been optimised for best performance in moderate wind speed areas, which are typical over most of the UK. In moderate wind speeds the Gaia Wind Turbine out produces any small wind turbine currently on the market, generating better value for all of our customers.

Government Incentives

Following the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s (DECC) publication, ‘Consultation on Renewable Energy Financial Incentives’, the financial reward for installing a small wind turbine will be greatly increased. Following the ‘Feed-In Tariff’ model which has proven so successful around Western Europe, the Government will work with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) in order to stimulate residential investment in renewable energy sources. In order to obtain easy access to the tariff, products must be included in the transition list and approved by the MCS. The Gaia-Wind 133-11kW turbine is eligible for entry and is listed as transition product 227.

At the heart of the scheme is a tariff of 26.7p/unit for all renewable electricity generated from small wind turbines in the 1.5-15kW range. This incentive will replace the carbon credit (ROC) scheme for small wind turbines, which is currently worth circa 9p/unit. Those who install a wind turbine will now benefit from the new tariff in three ways: lower energy bills, payments from electricity they feed back into the grid, and further payment from the FIT for all the energy they generate and either use themselves or feed back to the grid. The scheme is not limited to new installations and will also apply to any installations commissioned since July 2008.

Carbon Emissions

Behind the new Microgeneration Certification Scheme is the drive to reduce UK carbon emissions in order to bring them into line with European standards. The Government aim to eliminate all carbon emissions by 2050 and the current projection is that by 2020 almost half of the electricity used in the UK will be from low carbon sources. In order to reach these targets the Government are relying on residential and small business owners to switch to renewable energy and help eliminate the carbon footprint.