July 4, 2014: the U.K.'s solar industry was still adjusting to the news that the government was to scrap the well-received Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) scheme for solar farms larger than 5 MW a couple of years early. Developers up and down the country had one single date, deadline, target in their minds: April 1, 2015 - the day that the ROC would be no more for large-scale U.K. solar. That time of uncertainty also triggered a period of extreme focus: the U.K. ended the year with more than 2.5 GW of new PV capacity added, and began Q1 2015 with a bang, too: estimates suggest that in excess of 1.6 GW of solar PV capacity was installed in the first three months alone. But since that April 1 deadline, the pace - save for a few large projects that were granted a ROC grace period - has seriously tailed-off. Then, in May, the Conservative party was elected to govern, casting even more uncertainty across the industry. In appointing Amber Rudd as energy secretary, there is hope: Rudd has spoken in favor of solar farms in the past, and her viewpoint - that the future of solar in the U.K. rests on rooftops rather than fields - chimes with an evolving market that is maturing and growing with each passing day. This year's Solar Independence Day is, therefore, a good opportunity to take stock of what has been a busy 12 months, and for the STA to help steer solar's course over the duration of the current government, while also educating the general public about the benefits of solar power. pv magazine caught up with Sophie Dunlop, STA's Solar Independence Day coordinator, to find out more about this year's program and the STA's hopes for the future. Having observed the ups and downs of the U.K. solar industry over the past 12 months, how does the STA's Solar Independence Day differ this year compared to last?Sophie: The big difference is that we now have a fully costed and very detailed plan that ...Den vollständigen Artikel lesen ...