The Housing Minister first visited the project in March to see how green services provider Eaga is working with Welwyn Hatfield Community Housing Trust and the Council to help tenants cut fuel bills and carbon emissions.
Eaga has now completed its hundredth install in Welwyn by fitting a system for local resident Jean Monk. It hopes to fit more than 1,000 by the end of the year.
“This is a great opportunity to do my bit for the environment and to save money at the same time. The installers were really efficient and quick, they left no mess and there was no disruption. In fact the whole process was very simple,” explained Mrs Monk.
“When I first came here I said it was important that all households can benefit from low carbon living, regardless of their ability to pay, and I’m delighted to see this partnership between Eaga and Welwyn Hatfield is making a huge difference for people like Mrs Monk,” said Grant Shapps. “It should set a clear example of how initiatives like this can work across the UK.”
Driven by the FiT
The scheme is being delivered through Eaga’s Clean Energy Programme, which utilises the feed-in-tariff (FiT) to provide an income from surplus electricity produced domestically. Working with social housing providers Eaga uses its Clean Energy Programme to install solar PV panels for tenants - at no cost to them or the landlord.
John Swinney, Eaga Director of Strategy, said: “Feed-in-tariffs were only introduced in April so this is a great start and we are delighted to be working with Welwyn Hatfield Council. The technology can save households up to £200 a year on fuel bills and cut annual carbon emissions by around 1.2 tonnes.”
“Organisations like housing associations are facing increasingly tough targets to cut carbon, and given the early interest in this programme we would encourage all social landlords and investors interested in finding out more about the Clean Energy Programme to contact us,” he added.
Funding for the scheme is from private sector investors who receive a return or yield from the FiT revenue generated by the solar panels. A single system will offer a typical return of up to £900 a year, which can be scaled up to form an attractive income. Eaga is currently finalising arrangements with 12 social landlords across the UK to install further arrays.
Eaga was established in 1990 as a private limited company to lead Government-funded efforts to improve the living conditions of vulnerable people living in cold, damp and energy inefficient homes across England.
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