Saturday 3 March 2007

Whinge, whinge for microgeneration (PV only)

Well here we are again at the beginning of the month and the PV industry is crying out again for more subsidies. Their argument is with the LCBP grants, which run out within 10 minutes of their availablity every month. What a surprise? The PV industry says it is because the govenrment is providing inadeqaute support for a fantastic technology. Saner members of scoiety probably recognise that if you offer ridiculous subsidies (50%) for a product which is an economic basket case, then there are some who might think they are getting a good deal. Even with this absurd subsidy though, the payback is over 60 years! There are obviously too many nutters in London with too much money and no understanding of life, the universe or anything to realise that this is one of the biggest scams of the 21st century. Rather than whingeing about inadequate amounts of funding, might they not consider why PV gets 50% whilst other technologies get rather less; and if PV got, say 30%, as biomass, would the money run out quite so fast?
An objective observer might also wonder why PV is in quite such a priveleged position; does someone with a major investment in a PV company have a disproportionate influence in government circles; and if so, whose brother is he?

Not such a sad day for micro CHP

The premature revalations of the death of Microgen (post 1st February 2007) have, according to the latest rumours, proved unfounded. Why is it that the doom mongers of micro CHP jump on every opportunity to belittle the benefits or even the mere existence of micro CHP?
According to a number of credible sources, the Microgen micro CHP unit is alive and kicking, through a consortium of Baxi, Remeha and Gas Terra (aka Gasunie). Further rumours indicate that both Baxi and Remeha plan to display their Microgen based miro CHP units at ISH in Frankfurt next week.

Of course micro CHP only delivers electricity at 200g/kWh compared with renewable technologies such as PV at a mere 250g/kWh, so why should any governement really support it?