how to generate your own electricity
Electricity can be generated from renewable sources such as the sun, wind or flowing water. Small-scale production of energy is often referred to as
microgeneration, and when
microgeneration is from renewable sources it has the potential to help us reduce our carbon footprint.
The government has introduced a ‘feed-in tariff’ with the aim of encouraging more small-scale electricity generation from the following sources
The Customer-Led Network Revolution project includes studying patterns of electricity generation for homes and businesses with solar PV panels and Micro CHP.
The feed-in tariff is a ‘clean-energy cash back’ which will allow many people to invest in small-scale low-carbon electricity, in return for a guaranteed payment for the electricity they generate and export.
The feed-in tariff consists of two types of payment: a generation tariff paid per unit of electricity generated and an export tariff for electricity not used by the householder ie fed back into the network.
The generation tariff, ie the price paid, will vary depending on the technology type and scale. Payments will be given for a 20-year period (except for solar photovoltaic, which will be 25 years and Micro-CHP, which will be 10 years).
For more information on the feed-in tariff visit the
Energy Saving Trust’s Feed in Tariff page.
The Northern Powergrid ‘Guide to
microgeneration and getting connected’ has more information on the feed-in tariff, different types of
microgeneration and how to go about getting your generation connected to the electricity network. Download the guide here.
Your guide to microgeneration