What is the Renewable Heat Incentive?

The Renewable Heat Incentive is a fixed payment for the renewable heat you generate yourself

The Renewable Heat Incentive is very similar to the Feed-in Tariffs, a comparable scheme for electricity which went live in April 2010. The Feed-In Tariffs have done more than anything else to accelerate the installation of renewable energy capacity in Europe. That's why the founders of Renewable Heat Incentive Limited were so active in the campaign to introduce them in the UK. It succeeded and in April 2011 the Renewable Heat Incentive will come into force.

While the Renewable Heat Incentive is very similar to the Feed-In Tariffs, there are some important differences due to the fact that pretty much every single property in the UK generates its own heat from a gas or oil boiler. In other words, there is no ‘National Grid for Heat’ and so importing and exporting heat is not relevant.

There are three steps to the RHI:

Step One: you install renewable heat systems in your property such as solar thermal panels, heat pumps or a biomass (wood burning) boiler

Step Two: an estimate is made about how much heat your renewable energy systems will produce

Step Three: you get paid a fixed amount based on that estimate

Who is it for?

Broadly speaking, the Renewable Heat Incentive is for everyone, including households, landlords, businesses, farmers, schools, hospitals, care homes and more. The RHI can even be used by entire communities, coming together to invest in a renewable scheme from which they will all use the heat and share the income.

More specific details about how different people and organisations can utilise the RHI are shown on our parent company Ownergy's web page on Who Can Benefit. 

What renewable energy systems are eligible?

Most forms of renewable heat generation in all sizes. Read more in our section about Eligibility.

Do they cover electricity?

No; that is being covered by the Feed-In Tariffs - the Renewable Heat Incentive's older brother.

We used the word ‘older’ because unlike the Renewable Heat Incentive, the Feed-In Tariffs are in place in roughly 40 other countries...whereas the Renewable Heat Incentive is a World First!

We have a site just like this one which can (hopefully!) answer all the questions you could possibly ask about the Feed-In Tariffs: www.fitariffs.co.uk.