Heating and Ventilation News
General praise for stricter carbon reduction targets from next year is tempered by longer-term questions around industry support and opportunities to exceed national building requirements
The construction sector has welcomed some of the major commitments made by the government in its Future Homes Standard, such as the introduction of stricter energy efficiency standards from 2022. However, some industry bodies have questioned whether enough support will be in place to realistically meet the standards nationally in both new and existing homes.
A government response to its consultation on setting revised efficiency requirements for new build homes from 2025 has formalised intentions to ban fossil fuel heating, including natural gas boilers, from future buildings.
By:
Reporter, Solar Power Portal
On 1 January 2020 – just over a year ago today - the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) went live. A brand spanking new incentive scheme, the SEG was intended to replace the feed-in tariff (FiT) but with one major difference: this time the rate would be set by energy suppliers, resulting in a wide spread of prices.
To really understand what happened when it was implemented – and the following year of operation – a look at the events from the closure of the FiT to the end of 2019 is required. The small scale solar sector had truly ridden the solarcoaster with the FiT, seeing such a boom that in 2015 the government unveiled sweeping – and at the time execeptionally unpopular – changes that saw a cap introduced to limit how much solar could be installed as well as a proposed reduction from 12.47p/kWh to 1.63p/kWh that was later upped to 4.39p/kWh following a number of industry protests. Whilst this certainly had an impact, with the initial rate
The Solar Trade Association has rebranded to become Solar Energy UK. We caught up with chief executive Chris Hewett to find out what the trade body has in store for 2021.
Kwasi Kwarteng steps up to BEIS Secretary post as Alok Sharma takes on full-time COP Presidency
The Government has confirmed that Alok Sharma will step down from his position as Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to enable more focus on his role as COP26 President, with Kwasi Kwarteng named as his replacement.
The reshuffle will enable Sharma to focus on the COP26 climate summit full-time. Image: Gov UK
Sharma took up the COP26 Presidency 11 months ago, taking on the role in tandem with his position as BEIS Secretary. As part of a mini cabinet reshuffle, Sharma will now concentrate on COP26 preparations full time.
Kwasi Kwarteng has taken over as Secretary of State at UK Energy Department as part of a ministerial reshuffle at BEIS.
Kwarteng, who was previously Energy Minister at the department, replaces Alok Sharma, who is now full-time President of the UN COP26 climate conference, which takes place in Glasgow in November.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan, an MP for Berwick-upon-Tweed, will take the climate and energy brief vacated by Kwarteng.
The renewables industry has welcomed the appointments.
“We’re absolutely delighted that such a strong and passionate advocate for renewable energy has stepped up to the very top of his department as Secretary of State,” said RenewableUK chief executive Hugh McNeal.