11 Jul 2011 10:07:10
M&S halts solar plans following FIT cuts
Marks & Spencer has revealed it cancelled plans for a substantial solar array after the government announced it was slashing its Feed-in Tariff rates.
In a speech to non-governmental organisations about its sustainability plan, Richard Gillies, Marks & Spencer's director of Plan A, CSR and sustainability, said uncertainty about government policy led it to abandon its plans.
The retailer had planned on fitting solar panels at its Bradford distribution centre, which already produces zero emissions, BusinessGreen reported.
"We went through all the work [for the solar array] only to find the Feed-in Tariff revised ... and the CRC turned into a carbon tax," Mr Gillies said.
He added M&S had been "looking for consistency and a framework we can make decisions in".
The government's reduction of subsidies under the FIT scheme for solar installations of greater than 50kW was confirmed last month, much to the disappointment of those within the industry.
According to the Department of Energy and Climate Change, there was a greater than anticipated number of applications for large-scale solar installations and this was drawing funding away from smaller household installations.
