Thank you for contacting me about the Local Electricity Bill.
I believe distributed generation may have a role to play a part in a smarter, more efficient energy system and small scale low-carbon technologies should have a level playing field as the market for smarter services evolves.
The Local Electricity Bill, introduced by Peter Aldous MP, has had its First Reading in the House of Commons. Its Second Reading is scheduled for 11 September. I am a supporter of the Bill and look forward to seeing it return to the House.
Community energy is a key part of clean growth and can de-carbonise energy in local areas while bringing other economic or social benefits. That is why I the welcome the introduction of the Local Energy Programme which supports local actors, community groups, local authorities and combined authorities to develop their own energy strategies and deliver their own energy programmes.
Since 01 January 2020 the previous Feed-in Tariff scheme has been replaced with the Smart Export Guarantee, which gives small-scale low-carbon electricity generators, such as homes with solar panels, the right to be paid by certain electricity suppliers for the renewable electricity they export to the grid.
This new scheme could create a whole new market, encouraging suppliers to competitively bid for this electricity, giving exporters the best market price while providing the local grid with more clean, green energy, unlocking greater choice and control for solar households over buying and selling their electricity. It reflects the Government’s continued commitment to ensuring that low carbon electricity is central to the transition to the smart and flexible energy systems of the future.
