The Smart Export Guarantee is a great way for homeowners to generate money from any excess electricity their solar panels generate.
Despite the typical Scottish weather, solar panels are a great way to power your home in Scotland. Sometimes, your panels can even generate more electricity than your home needs meaning the generated power will go to waste. That is unless you have ways of storing this electricity or are signed up to the Smart Export Guarantee scheme.
Read on to find out more about the Smart Export Guarantee scheme.
What is the Smart Export Guarantee?
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a scheme for homeowners and businesses who generate electricity to receive payments from suppliers for any electricity they export to the national grid.
If you have installed solar PV panels or other small scale microgeneration in your home or business then you may be able to earn money for any excess electricity you generate and send back to the grid.
How Do I Apply For The Smart Export Guarantee?
To apply for the scheme you will need to apply a SEG export tariff to an SEG licensee.
The licensee does not need to be the same company you receive your electricity from. Different suppliers may offer different tariffs or change from time to time. Therefore, applicants are suggested to shop around for the best tariff for them. It is also advised to regularly review your tariff options.
The SEG licensee will then review your application and determine whether your installation is eligible.
What Are The Eligibility Criteria for Solar Panels?
For your solar panels system to be eligible for the Smart Export Guarantee scheme, you will be asked to demonstrate that your installation and installer are MCS certified or equivalent.
The Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) are a quality assurance standard in the UK. It certifies that microgeneration (the small scale production of heat or electricity from low carbon sources) products and installers.
It is important to make sure your products and installer are MCS certified before you invest in solar panels. Not only does it allow you to apply for the SEG scheme, but going with an MCS certified installer gives customers some peace of mind. For homeowners, MCS can guarantee safety, high quality installation and customer protection.
You can read the full eligibility criteria and guidance here.
Smart Export Guarantee vs. Feed-In Tariff
Before the Smart Export Guarantee scheme, there was the Feed-in Tariff.
The Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme was introduced back in the UK in 2010. The aim was to incentivise homeowners and businesses to invest in renewable energy. It required energy suppliers to pay those with energy renewable energy generation systems for the electricity they generated and contributed to the National Grid. The scheme was massively successful as more people than anticipated installed solar panels and benefited from the FiT scheme.
The scheme closed to new applicants in March 2019. In its place, they introduced the SEG scheme on the 1st January 2020.
This scheme is different from FiT as you only get paid for any excess electricity your panels generate. So, if you are currently receiving payments from the Feed-in Tariff scheme then you may be better off sticking with it rather than switching to the SEG scheme. While the scheme has closed those receiving FiT payments are guaranteed for the remainder of the 20-25 year period that you signed up for originally.
So, if you have more recently installed solar panels or never applied for the FiT scheme before it closed then you should consider applying for the Smart Export Guarantee scheme.
Alternatives to Selling Excess Solar Power
As solar panels can’t store any excess solar energy they generate it will be lost if not used. However, there is a way to store this electricity instead of selling it back to the grid.
Solar batteries, or solar power storage, allow the energy generated from your panels to be stored and used at a later time. While solar batteries are the cheapest way to store electricity generated by your solar panels, they can be expensive.
Whether a solar battery is a worthwhile investment is completely dependent on your household and its energy needs. You can benefit from both having a solar battery and being signed up for the SEG. However, just keep in mind that not all energy suppliers that purchase solar energy will take energy that has been stored in a battery.
Looking for Solar Panels?
If you are looking for solar panels you can get a free no obligation quote here.
At Homeshield Scotland, we have been providing homeowners with ways to make their homes more energy efficient.
We have been installing solar panels, air source heat pumps and batteries in customer’s homes for a number of years.
Get started on your journey to a warmer, cheaper, and greener future today!
Conclusion
The Smart Export Guarantee is a great way for homeowners to make the most out of their investment. It means any excess energy generated by their panels can be sold for some extra cash.
If you already have solar panels, you should definitely consider signing up. If you haven’t got solar panels but looking to get them then you can get a free no obligation quote.
