UK: ADBA issues press release on latest DECC announcement

EBA Member ADBA’s latest press release explains the association position towards recent DECC (Deparment of Energy and Climate Change) announcement on UK’s Feed-in-Tariff scheme. 

Despite the consultations claim that anaerobic digestion tariffs will remain unchanged, the proposal to limit the FITs scheme to a maximum overall budget of £75-100 million from January 2016 to 2018/19 is projected to have a disastrous effect on investor certainty and therefore any further deployment.

Commenting on the disturbing nature of DECC’s findings, ADBA’s Chief Executive, Charlotte Morton, explained:

“The FIT consultation proposes restricting support for anaerobic digestion to just 17 new plants next year – for an industry which deployed 89 plants in 2014. This should be the time to build on our foundations, not dismantle them. Support of anaerobic digestion offers a fantastic return on the taxpayer’s investment, providing baseload electricity to help keep the lights on, offering cost-effective greenhouse gas reductions and growing a domestic supply chain which can export to the world.”

 “If DECC’s current proposals go ahead, the results would prove disastrous for the renewables industry – prompting higher consumer bills in the long-term, a greater reliance on energy sourced from volatile parts of the world, an uncertain future for UK farming resilience, and all in the year when the Prime Minister wishes to take his stand as a global leader in pledging substantial carbon reduction targets. It is wrong to limit the industry’s growth in this way, especially before DECC has even consulted on appropriate support levels for the technology. We will be working with our members to respond strongly to the proposals and demonstrate the fantastic value for money which AD provides.”

This announcement comes as earlier this week ADBA highlighted the progress that the industry has made with the support of government incentives, with the anaerobic digestion industry now delivering an electrical equivalent capacity (electricity and biomethane) of 514 MW across 411 plants in the farming, waste and water sectors.

DECC’s announcement stands to undo all this colossal achievement from the previous parliament just at the moment the growth surge takes hold.

Source: ADBA