Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Feed in Tariff for the UK
The UK Government has now announced feed in tariffs for small wind turbines and photovoltaic solar panels:
36.5p/kWh for small solar photovoltaic systems up to 4kW, and 28p/kWh for systems up to 10kW.
23.0p/kWh for small wind turbines between 1.5kW and 15kW.
These tariffs will replace the current ROC system. Payments will begin on 1st April 2010, but all small wind and solar systems commissioned from now on will be eligible for both LCBP grants and the new feed in tariff.
Read more information on the tariffs click here.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Eco-button
This simple little button could save you money and increase awareness on how much energy your computer uses.
The ecobutton™ acts as a strong visual reminder and prompt for you to save electricity each time your computer is going to be left idle.
The ecobutton™ is illuminated and sits on your table/desk top next to your keyboard. It connects to your computer via a USB cable. Each time you take a short or long break, a phone call, go for a meeting etc. you simply press the ecobutton™ and your computer is put into the most efficient energy saving mode available - we call this 'ecomode'.
People generally do not like turning off their computers due to the time it often takes to restart (particularly when hibernate is used). However, with ecobutton™ by simply pressing any key on your keyboard (some computers require a momentary press of the power button) your computer instantly returns to where you left off.
There's also an additional bonus as each time your computer is put into 'ecomode' the clever ecobutton™ software records how many carbon units and how much power and money you have saved by using the ecobutton™.
Over time this can add up to quite a lot (especially if you have many computers running in an office) and you can use this data to help reduce your carbon footprint as well as your energy bills.