Solar Sun fields

[brendaward]

Just listening to the radio. There is a company approaching farmers to use some of the fields for solar panels to make money from the feed in tariff. Apparently farmers can receive up to £500 per acre plus up to £50,000 pound per year for twenty five years in which the feed in tariff is guaranteed. This could be good on low grade agricultural ground but would it be a loss of more agricultural ground?

[Lancashire Lad]

This was only to be expected with the perverse logic that the government has sanctioned that all those individuals or organisations who become Feed-In-Tariff "generating companies" will be effectively paid four times as much per unit as the end product is (in a competitive market) commercially worth.

This is a no brainer for those able to participate. (Talk about laughing all the way to the bank!!).

And, rather obviously, every domestic electrical consumer will be paying increased bills to finance the scheme.

I would have gone into the why's and wherefore's of explaining just how costly the Feed-In-Tariff is going to be for all those who can't jump on the bandwaggon themselves, but this article mirrors my thoughts precisely: -
Are we really going to let ourselves be duped into this solar panel rip-off? | George Monbiot | Comment is free | The Guardian

It is essential that the full article is read, but I draw your attention to this paragraph: -

QUOTE

"Their total contribution to carbon savings, as a paper in the journal Energy Policy points out, is zero. This is because Germany, like the UK, belongs to the European emissions trading scheme. Any savings made by feed-in tariffs permit other industries to raise their emissions. Either the trading scheme works, in which case the tariffs are pointless, or it doesn't, in which case it needs to be overhauled. The government can't have it both ways".

UNQUOTE

As long as we are part of the European Emissions Trading Scheme, (and as long as Britain is a part of the EU we most certainly will be), for the average domestic electricity consumer, the feed in tariff scheme is nothing more than a hugely expensive con.


Regards,
Mike.

[brendaward]

it is quite daunting to think that as we are going about the British countryside we may see complete fields and hills covered with black glass. They could dwarf the wind turbines into insignificance. Some companies are going to get very rich in the next twenty five years while the people get poorer.