Renewable Heat Grants For Social Housing

In the last few days, the Government have initiated a funding competition to accelerate the deployment of renewable heating technologies in the social housing sector.

The Renewable Heat Incentive is a fixed Government subsidy for heat produced from installed renewable sources. The Government will make a payment based on a pence/ KwH rate of heat produced. The intention is to drive uptake of renewable heating to achieve 12% of total heat consumption in the UK by 2020. In the first phase, long-term tariff support will be targeted in the non-domestic sectors, at the big heat users - the industrial, business and public sector The second phase of the RHI scheme will see households moved to the same form of long-term tariff support offered initially to the non-domestic sector.

Individual householders are presently supported through the Renewable Heat Premium Payment, a grant scheme providing funding for renewable heat sources.

On 15 August, the Department of Energy and Climate Change announced that this grant scheme will be extended to social housing providers. The Energy Saving Trust is inviting bids for funds to support value for money proposals from Registered Providers of social housing. Aid of up to £175,000 is available for projects installing biomass boilers, solar thermal systems, ground source heat pumps, air to water source heat pumps and water to water source heat pumps. Organisations may submit a bid for one or multiple projects (e.g. projects in adjacent areas), provided that the combined total funding does not exceed £175,000.

£3 million will be available under the new scheme which should in total...