The High Court has given permission today (Thursday 15 December 2011) to Friends of the Earth and two solar companies – Solarcentury and HomeSun – to challenge government plans to slash financial incentives for solar electricity. The Judicial review will be heard on Tuesday and Wednesday (20/21 December 2011) next week.

 Solar installers in hard hats and overalls will join Friends of the Earth as a solar panel is put in a large bin to highlight the 29,000 jobs that will be lost through government cuts. This will take place as a Friends of the Earth application to the High Court to challenge ministers’ plans is heard in the High Court.

SmartestEnergy has urged the government to close the gap between Feed-in Tariff (FiT) rates for domestic and commercial scale solar projects.

Several high profile legal challenges against the government’s decision to slash Feed-in Tariffs (FiT) for solar installations from December 12 have been rejected by the High Court, reports GreenWise. But green campaign group Friends of the Earth and two solar companies – Solarcentury and HomeSun – are appealing against the High Court decision. Friends of the Earth said today it had received confirmation its appeal hearing to fight the government solar FiT decision would take place on December 15. It follows a ruling on November 25 by the High Court rejecting permission for a legal challenge on the grounds the case was not strong enough. “The organisations are now asking the High Court to reverse the decision and allow a hearing into the legal challenges as soon as possible,” Friends of the Earth said in a release. The green group and the solar firms decided to take legal action against the government after it announced on October 31 it planned to cut FiTs by more than 50 per cent on solar installations completed on or after December 12 this year. In their case, Friends of the Earth, Solarcentury and HomeSun argue the government’s FiT plans are unlawful because the December 12 cut-off point is two weeks before the consultation on the fast track FiT review ends. Friends of the Earth adds this will “unfairly cause” numerous planned solar schemes to be abandoned and could cost up to 29,000 jobs. “We strongly believe government plans to abruptly slash solar subsidies are illegal, we hope the High Court agrees to allow our case to be heard as soon as possible,” Friends of the Earth’s executive director Andy Atkins said today. “In a time of economic gloom, the solar industry has been one of the UK’s brightest success stories, enabling homes and communities across the country to free themselves from expensive fossil fuels. “It’s short sighted for Ministers to move the goalposts and prematurely pull the subsidy – this will cost tens of thousands of jobs, bankrupt businesses and reduce Treasury income by up to £230 million a year.” Last week, heating and renewable energy giant Carillion confirmed it had put 4,500 of its staff on redundancy notice because of the Government’s planned cuts to solar subsidy rates. Friends of the Earth said it was also asking the High Court to cap its potential legal costs for the case. International rules specify that costs should be limited in public interest cases on the environment. In a separate, but related move, ‘Cut, Don’t Kill’ the campaign group seeking to get the government to reverse its decision on solar cuts, has announced it is planning another day of action on December 13.

The High Court has agreed to hear applications by Friends of the Earth and two solar companies – Solarcentury and HomeSun – for permission to challenge government plans to slash financial incentives for solar electricity on Thursday 15 December 2011.

Commenting on news that services company Carillion has told 4,500 staff that their jobs are at risk following plans to halve subsidies on solar power, Friends of the Earth’s energy campaigner, Donna Hume warned: “This is just the tip of the iceberg – if ministers push ahead with plans to slash solar subsidies tens of thousands of jobs could be lost.

As the 4,500-strong workforce at Carillion Energy come to terms with their first full day of a 90-day mass redundancy consultation today, analysts have warned the move could force further companies to the brink of collapse.

Facade and renewable energy specialist, The Alumet Group has been successful at the Construction Marketing Awards (CMA) in London. The company beat a shortlist of eight to receive the Best Marketing Campaign over £25k award in recognition of the successful launch and national awareness of its EOS Energy brand.

Energy minister Greg Barker, has said his only regret about introducing an early December cut-off point for solar PV subsidy was that he “didn’t do it earlier”.

Commenting on chancellor George Osborne’s Autumn Statement today (Tuesday 29 November 2011), Friends of the Earth’s executive director Andy Atkins said:“George Osborne’s Autumn Statement will send a wintery blast through the UK’s future economic prospects.

Good Energy does not agree with the government’s decision to bring forward the deadline for registering the higher rate of  Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs) from April to December. However, the company wants to make sure as many small solar electricity generators as possible get their applications in by the deadline of midnight on the 11th of December. Good Energy says it has been supporting independent renewable generators for almost a decade – they’re the foundation upon which the company sees a 100 per cent renewable energy future being built – and believes the government’s decision isn’t going to change that.

Cumbria-based solar PV company Sundog Energy, has been awarded the Investors in People (IiP) Silver Award, making it one of approximately 148 organisations to receive the accolade out of 38,000 applicants in the UK. Gaining IiP Silver status places Sundog in the top 1 per cent of Investors in People and makes it one of the first solar PV companies to achieve such an award.

Renewable energy company Eco Environments has taken three months’ orders in just two weeks following the news that the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) cuts would kick-in from December 12. As of this date, the tariff for solar PV schemes up to 4kW will be cut from 43.3/kWh to 21p/kWh. While Eco Environments is lobbying the government to reconsider the extent of the tariff cut, the company had been planning for it for some time. David Hunt, a director with Eco Environments, said: “We knew and accepted that the current subsidy level of 43.3p for smaller domestic and commercial solar PV installations was coming to an end. “What shocked us and the industry as a whole, was the extent of the cut and the speed with which it is being implemented. “When the announcement was made at the end of October, we committed to getting as many customers as possible up and running before December 12 which helped us achieve sales greater than last year’s entire turnover in one month. We accepted three months’ orders in two weeks and could have taken on six months’ orders if we hadn’t closed the order books to ensure that we could deliver schemes ahead of the 12th. “Our order book also remains healthy and growing for installations after the deadline because customers understand that it remains one of the best investments you can make, far better than an ISA, bank or savings account. It is also tax free, index-linked and fixed for 25 years.” The company has also achieved both ISO9001 quality management and ISO14001 environmental management accreditations. Eco Environments’ commercial director, Mark Buchanan, said: “It is only because our company has been thoroughly tested in all departments and has strong cultures, processes, people and systems that we are able to respond as quickly and effectively as possible to the needs of our customers.”