Does old MCS certificate cover new work?

[nowty]

In the FIT days, this is what you needed. I have two MCS certificates and two generation meters for two separate FIT installs as they were put in at different times and on different rates. But today for a new install I'm not sure if a generation meter would even be fitted if the customer is using a Smart Meter for SEG.

It seems a bit of an overhang from the FIT days and the assumption that all arrays are connected to an AC grid tie inverter.

[Krill]

I was just reading the updated 2020 MIS 3002 and it clear states that all installations shall have have a meter fitted to record AC generation.

So even though sharpeners installation has no AC connection it would still need a meter fitting that would record zero generation for the installation itself to be MCS compliant, otherwise it would not be MCS compliant. Section 5.6.1 https://mcscertified.com/wp-content/upl ... s-V4.0.pdf given the contract he had they were required to fit a meter.

I agree that this is a weird holdover but there is a bit in there that an EESS would not affect the generation meter via arbitrage so it looks like the guidance has a hole in it.

[sharpener]

I was just reading the updated 2020 MIS 3002 and it clear states that all installations shall have have a meter fitted to record AC generation.

So even though sharpeners installation has no AC connection it would still need a meter fitting that would record zero generation for the installation itself to be MCS compliant, otherwise it would not be MCS compliant.

They have met this requirement now, the meter is sitting in the installer's store and from there it can quite happily measure all the AC that is generated by the panels they have fitted.

Meanwhile the data from my Victron charge controller can be accessed from anywhere and (even though it was not within their scope of supply) serve my "customer satistaction" and "fault detection" purposes very well. Immediately the panels started up a new variable "Today's Yield" appeared in the one-line display on the inverter. Today there is "Yesterday's Yield" as well. As it is near the top of the scrolling list I hope there is not going to be an endless series of them before I get to the SoC display which is rather more important!

I also have an Eastron meter which measures net import and export separately, as the FIT TGM was never able to do that and I cannot have a smart meter as there are no comms. CBA to interrogate it over Modbus though.

[AE-NMidlands]

In the FIT days, this is what you needed. I have two MCS certificates and two generation meters for two separate FIT installs as they were put in at different times and on different rates. But today for a new install I'm not sure if a generation meter would even be fitted if the customer is using a Smart Meter for SEG.

It seems a bit of an overhang from the FIT days and the assumption that all arrays are connected to an AC grid tie inverter.

do we think that one day "they" might try taxing us on self-consumed PV?

But I still have the money. My guess is that they will find it less trouble to get me a certificate than justify to MCS why they will not do so. I am thinking in terms of a substantial retention against its provision.

Apparently they need to supply a generation meter serial number to MCS, even if they are not supplying one and there is no AC connection involved. So they used a random meter in their stores, now they can't use it for any other MCS installation. Tant pis!

pity the poor s*ds who get that meter fitted when they try to get connected. Will definitely be "Computer says "no"!" for them...

[nowty]

Do we think that one day "they" might try taxing us on self-consumed PV?

"They" are losing the 5% VAT on our displaced consumption.

I'm a little nervous about next years FIT increase as it will be eye watering and going on everyone's bills in the levy's.

RPI in Oct was 14.2% so I reckon RPI for Dec could be 16% or 17%.
Thats a political hard sell.

[marshman]

Do we think that one day "they" might try taxing us on self-consumed PV?

"They" are losing the 5% VAT on our displaced consumption.

I'm a little nervous about next years FIT increase as it will be eye watering and going on everyone's bills in the levy's.

RPI in Oct was 14.2% so I reckon RPI for Dec could be 16% or 17%.
Thats a political hard sell.

It will get lost in the noise, doubt the FiT increase will get a mention apart from on here and a couple of other forums. Not sure if RPI/inflation will go up much more. Petrol/diesel costs have come down from their peaks, next increase in domestic energy costs are next year. Factory costs are stabilising - shipping costs from the far east have declined a lot, cost of raw plastic has come down, supply chain issues are easing, the semi conductor industry has done its typical ramp up production just as demand is falling, they have done it every economic cycle that I can remember since the 1980's, so the "chip shortage" will ease. Mortgage interest rates have dropped back a smidge as well. There are obviously still issues with wage inflation, but I think the big employers will link any deal with sorely needed productivity and efficiency increases, if they don't then they should. Also issues with food costs, not sure how that is going to pan out.

Can't see the government being able to "tax" self consumption - too many unmetered installs now, many bigger than the original metered FiT's ones

[Oldgreybeard]

There a bit of swings and roundabouts when it comes to index linking, as it's almost always behind the curve. As I understand it, the FiT increase is set by the RPI for the previous year, so it is always late, in that electricity will have been exported and paid for in the previous year at a rate that will almost certainly be lower than the average wholesale rate. By the time the FiT rate gets updated FiT generators may well have already lost a significant amount.

Same goes for my index-linked pension. That increases in April each year, but the increase is set by the CPI for the previous September, so is always 6 months behind the curve.

I rather suspect that the time delays involved with index link knock a fair bit of the apparent headline cost.