By Chris Witte.
Solar PV and Thermal has kept dozens of small contracting and electrical businesses going over the last couple of years and manufacturers like Kingspan have invested in the opportunity. e.g. they have invested over £15m in Solar and project to employ 1,200 directly within 5 years…with several times this number of jobs created through the supply chain. They are just one player.
I think job creation is the quickest route out of economic stagnation. But these jobs are now less likely to be created and recent Government action and statements have made many potential international investors in UK Solar describe the UK as ‘unstable’ from a Solar investment perspective stating there are better options on the Continent.
Solar only needs support until grid parity is reached. That is driven by energy pricing and the cost of Solar. DECC have now accepted their worst case scenario for energy price rises is looking well short of reality, and we can expect an ‘adjustment’ in the next 6 months. This will show a scary escalation but prove the absolute need for Solar for both business and domestic to control their energy costs.
So grid parity is closer than Government figures suggest and an advanced growth industry sector can be created so long as it is nurtured over the next 3 – 5 years. Also, the job creation is through the construction supply chain, ie. much of it is at a local level; So MPs should write to DECC and demand support for Solar as an essential part of the UK energy mix.
Check out the article on Business Green
Posted by Chris Witte chris.witte@kingspan.com
