The solar power industry is bracing itself for a killer blow tomorrow when the Government is set to announce that it is to halve the rates it pays homeowners for the electricity they generate.
People with solar panels can currently sell any electricity generated to the National Grid for 43.3p per kilowatt hour, but it is understood that Energy Minister Greg Barker will announce a new tariff of just 21p.
The change will remove a major incentive for homeowners to install solar panels. A typical homeowner spending £10,000 on panels can recoup the cost in about ten years, but the tariff cut will extend that to 18 years.
The existing scheme has led to a boom in solar companies and 25,000 people work in the sector.
Daniel Green, chief executive of HomeSun in Wembley, north-west London, which employs about 700, said: 'Solar energy will be available only for the rich with a green conscience because the incentive to install a system is about zero. We will be bankrupted and the industry will lose thousands of jobs.'
Barker told a solar industry conference last week: 'I'm personally committed to ensuring that your industry can prosper in the longer term, sustaining green jobs at a critical time for our economy.
'I believe that solar power can have a strong and vibrant future in the UK, and making changes is vital if we are to ensure a lasting scheme to support that future.'
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