After a much-publicised campaign, the Government's drastic cut of the photovoltaic solar panel Feed-in Tariff (FIT) was deemed illegal in the High Court on December 21st. Mr Justice Mitting was highly critical of the way the cut had been imposed before the closing date of the public consultation on the very subject, which was set to close on December 23rd. Although it is highly likely that the Government will launch an appeal, the ruling was widely applauded as a victory for the solar industry.

It should be Texas rather than California, Texas the home of everything super-sized: cowboy hats, cars, egos, paunches; but as Texas is dedicated to oil, California carries the baton of solar energy super-sizing.

August 1st saw the implementation of the Government's changes to the Feed-in Tariff structure for larger installations of solar PV panels. The changes came as the system was awash with a flood of planning permission applications for large-scale PV installations on farm land, said to run into several hundreds. The change slashed the Feed-in Tariff for the largest installations from 29.3p per kWh of output right back to 8.5p per kWh.

In a classic 'foot in mouth' event, the Energy Saving Trust has just told consumers that investing in solar PV panels is not such good news after all. Jumped on by the Dail Mail with their headline: 'Solar panel myth: Experts slash estimates for how much solar panels will save you' achieved just about the opposite of their purpose in life which is to promote the efficient use of energy and particularly the use of renewable technologies.

Ofgem, the government energy watchdog has just released a report on the Feed-in Tariff Scheme (FITS) for its first full year to the end of March 2011. The report provides very detailed information on all renewable energy technologies, by region, on a quarterly basis.

On Thursday June 9th,The Beechdale Energy eco-showroom at the company's Kingston village (9 miles west of Cambridge) headquarters will be open all day and until at least 8pm.

Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan will be announcing ambitious plans for the widespead use of solar power generation at the forthcoming G-8 summit meeting in Deauville later this week. More surprising will be their intention to reduce the cost of solar power generation to one-third of the present level in 2020 and to one-sixth in 2030.

For most commercial buildings, the roof has always been considered simply as a lid to keep the rain out, but that is changing and roofs can now play a part in generating income for the owner or business tenant. PV panels, passively generating electricity from the sun's energy will provide a steady, reliable income stream with little or no ongoing cost. And in some cases no initial outlay at all. Read on....

Investing in residential property has become a popular choice in Britain over the last couple of decades but as property values rise in relation to rental incomes, the investment yield falls. With the introduction of the Feed-in Tariff Scheme (FITs) which pays for electricity produced by specified low-carbon methods under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), property investors are able to enhance the overall yield from their investments.

As part of its Spending Review, the Government has announced that the first review of the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) will be undertaken. Will this see a U-turn in the Government's commitment to promoting green energy?

Our new eco showroom of renewable energy products and installations was put to the test this evening when we hosted a launch event for our neighbours in Kingston village.