Helping New Builds Reach Their 10% Renewable Energy Target

The 10% renewable energy requirement is part of the national planning guidance and is enforced in regions. Put simply; 10% of a new build property’s energy requirements must come from a renewable source.

In reaction to this we’ve developed our new renewable energy specification service. Working from your architectural drawings and plans, we calculate a property’s expected heat loss. From this we design a heating system capable of providing a home’s warmth coupled with low energy bills. As part of this specification service, we’ll ensure the systems provides at least 10% of the renewable energy for the build.

Furthermore if you’re looking to reach your 10% target within a tight budget, we can specify for this also. For example a two panel solar PV or solar thermal system is inexpensive and may meet your needs.

As a business who works closely with a broad range of develops and self-build projects we have the experience necessary to ensure renewables complement rather than complicate your project.

Adding a renewable energy source to your project includes a number of benefits. Firstly, living cost for the new home owner will be reduced dramatically. Heightened public awareness of renewable energy coupled with the continuous rise of energy bills has led many home buyers to actively look for these technologies when buying a new home.

Secondly renewable energies provide an immediate positive impression. Developers we work with will make use of the hot water a solar thermal system can provide to encourage a purchase. Anyone viewing the property will be able to feel hot water flowing from the taps, whilst the immersion heater is turned off.

Thirdly renewable energies provide an impression of high quality and value. This combined with the look and feel of a new build creates a compelling combination.

If you’d like any further information, please get in contact. Either by phone, email or through our contact form.

The Green Deal Push

You maybe aware that in order to apply for the Renewable Heat Premium Payment you’ll need to get a Green Deal assessment. This was introduced with the increased payments a couple of months ago. Previously only an EPC certificate was required.

Whilst this introduced an additional cost and complication to the process of installing renewable energy, we at Complete Renewables are pro the move. A Green Deal assessment is a handy way for home owners to get an honest impression of the improvements they can make to their home. And any encouragement for home owners to adopt renewable energies is a positive in our book. Furthermore, we often find ourselves installing solar panels in rural parts of Essex which are not on mainline gas. These homes are generally paying large amounts to heat their homes and could benefit greatly from an air or ground source heat pump.

Today we received a letter from Greg Barker MP, minister for the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Summarised, the minister is encouraging MCS certified installers of renewable energy to consider becoming involved in the Green Deal. His request is broad; raising the potential to become a Green Deal assessor, installer or Green Deal Finance Provider. It’s fairly obvious these efforts are in response to a general lack of interest, or at least not quite the level of interest the government was hoping for. However this shouldn’t necessarily be seen as a desperate sign that the Green Deal simply isn’t working. Instead, and more likely, the Green Deal just needs a strong helping hand; it good to see the minister active in it’s promotion.

Whilst we’re keen to respond to Greg Barker’s call to action, it will need to be met with customer demand. We are currently experiencing a strong increase in the number of installations of heat pumps and solar panels. However our customers are rarely interested in the Green Deal. Whilst many of them are vaguely aware of the Green Deal, they are not aware of how they may benefit.

Being a small business, attempting to educate our customers on the benefits of the Green Deal is a huge endeavour. What we really need is a greater public promotion. It’s a far more achievable target to respond to a customer’s interest in a service, than to create that interest in the first instance. I’m not suggesting that the government does the promotion and we’ll do the selling, but rather ‘you promote the theme and I’ll promote the specifics’.