The government has stepped back from its proposal to cut the support for anaerobic digestion plants above 500kW.
The government’s review of support for Anaerobic Digestion (AD) and micro-CHP originally suggested cutting the Feed in Tariff for AD plants sized 500kW-5MW to zero. In a response to the consultation to the change, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said it had re-evaluated the assumptions underlying that decision and introduced revised AD generation tariffs as shown below:
However, it wasn’t all good news for the AD industry. BEIS said it will introduce sustainability criteria and feedstock restrictions, which will apply to all new AD installations from 1 May 2017. Additionally, payments to AD plant using non-waste feedstock will be limited to 50% of the total biogas yield on an annual basis. All feedstocks which are wastes or residues will continue be able to receive unlimited payments under the FIT scheme.
Commenting on the announcement, ADBA chief executive Charlotte Morton said: “While today’s announcement improves the FIT in some areas, it does little to address the lack of ambition the government has for anaerobic digestion as a mechanism to decarbonise farming and waste. Without anaerobic digestion on farms and of wastes, the government cannot decarbonise those key sectors so will miss its targets.”
She warned: “The Feed-in Tariff is now likely to be closed to new applications sometime next year. The Committee on Climate Change has highlighted the policy gap between what government is announcing and what is needed to meet the next carbon budget. So new support for AD needs to be developed as soon as possible so that it is in place by the time the FIT is closed,” she continued.
Related content:
Energy from waste industry takes a new interest in the energy side of the equation
ABDA criticises government for lack of ambition on anaerobic digestion
Generators to queue until October 2018 for Feed in Tariffs
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