As a pioneer, Treco is the first in the industry to specially formulate a Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) calculator which is essentially and easy-to-use spreadsheet. The purpose of the RHI calculator is to give an indication of the financial return and carbon reduction that could be achieved by the installation of a biomass boiler. It will calculate the cost saving of using biomass fuel versus existing fossil fuel, and the potential value of income from the RHI payments, fuel savings and the payback from the investment. The figures are expressed in both annual terms and as a total for the 20-year duration of the scheme.

As a guide, a country estate with main house and offices converting to a 200kW heating system would receive approximately £18,151 for the first year and a total of £441,015 over 20 years. A farm house with cottages and a holiday let using 100kW system would earn upwards of £9,075 and £220,507 over the duration of the scheme. The tariffs are reviewed every three months and are adjusted on the basis of the increase or decrease in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Due to the changes implemented to the RHI scheme from September 20, 2017, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has subsequently announced that no tariff degressions will be applied to either the domestic or non-domestic scheme on October 1, 2017, with the next potential degressions being applied January 1, 2018.

As for a large commercial drying system with a boiler size of 1MW and 75% of run hours at full output, it would generate a significant RHI income over 20 years. For the first year alone, the RHI generated would be approximately £163,637. Over the course of the scheme, the income would equate to approximately £3,975,944. It is easy to see how the project would pay for itself many times over, whilst continuing to generate a healthy income for the business for 20 years, reducing the overall and ongoing carbon emissions significantly as well as helping the UK achieve the targets as set out in the Paris Agreement.

How to use Treco's commercial RHI calculator

1. Enter the output of the system in kW
2. Enter the total installed cost of the project *
3. Choose the fossil fuel currently used
4. Choose the biomass fuel type
5. View summary of results which indicate carbon savings, net project cashflow, discounted cashflow and the payback period of the project
6. Review your results and change variables such as the cost of biomass fuel or the cost of borrowing

*If you do not know what the installed cost of your biomass boiler system may be, please call Treco or email us and we will be pleased to help.