Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential benefits of permitting (a) homeowners, (b) renters and (c) small businesses to install sub-1kW grid-tied solar systems without requiring prior approval from energy companies.

In line with the Government’s commitment to unleash a rooftop revolution, households and businesses are permitted to connect small-scale generation (3.68kW or less) to the grid without prior approval from their Distribution Network Operator (DNO). They must notify the DNO of the installation within 28 days of commissioning.

In its consultation on the end-to-end review of connections [1], Ofgem has proposed requiring all DNOs to review the 3.68kW threshold.

In the recent Solar Roadmap, the Government also committed to conducting a safety study to unlock opportunities of ‘plug-in solar’, where small solar systems are plugged directly into household power sockets.

1. Connections end-to-end review of the regulatory framework | Ofgem