Phase 1 July 2011
From July 2011, the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) was available for the industrial, business and public
sector.
There was also support of around £15 million for households
through the Renewable Heat Incentive from July 2011. In return for the payments, participants
will have to provide feedback on how the equipment performs in practice.
Phase 2 - Oct 2012
From October 2012, RHI tariffs for domestic properties will become available at the same time as the introduction
of the Green Deal. The Government has confirmed that renewable heat installations installed in homes since 15 July 2009 will
get the Renewable Heat Incentive once it comes in, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. The criteria relates
to the existing insulative qualities of the property and selecting products and installers that are MCS approved. It
has also been confirmed that this will include those who receive support under the RHPP scheme. However, the Government has
not yet published its proposals for how the RHI will work in the domestic sector, so we cannot at this stage provide more
information on this. In particular we cannot guarantee that those eligible for an RHPP grant will also be eligible for the
RHI.
The RHI Premium Payment
From August 2011 up to 25,000 installations will be
supported by a 'RHI Premium Payment' to help cover the purchase price. Eligibility criteria for the payments will
include:
- a fair spread of
technologies across all regions of Great Britain.
- a well insulated
home based on its Energy Performance Certificate.
- a focus on properties
off the gas grid, where heating fuels such as heating oil are more expensive and have a higher carbon content.
- agreement from the householder to monitor the performance of installations.
Technology | Level of support (per unit) |
| Solar thermal | £300 |
| Air source heat pumps | £850 |
| Biomass boilers | £950 |
| Ground source heat pumps | £1250 |
The Energy Saving
Trust is administering the Renewable Heat Premium Payment on behalf of the Department for Energy and Climate Change.
RHI payments will start for homes alongside the Green Deal in 2012 to allow for a more whole-house
approach to heat production and energy saving. The Department for Energy and Climate Change will consult on the RHI tariffs
later in the year.
Those who have taken up the RHI Premium Payment will be eligible for
RHI tariffs, as will anyone else who has had eligible equipment installed since July 2009 (exceptions apply if a grant has
been received which contributed to the direct costs of an installation).
RHI
tariffs - non-domestic
A non-domestic installation is a renewable heat unit in a building which is not used as a
domestic premises. This includes office buildings, schools and district heating schemes (e.g. one boiler serving
multiple homes).
The support that an installation receives will be fixed and adjusted annually
with inflation.
