Hong Kong utility CLP vows to help businesses and residents adopt renewable power generation
Scheme launching on October 1 will allow businesses and homeowners to sell excess output from devices such as rooftop solar panels back to energy suppliers
CLP Holdings, the larger of Hong Kong’s two power utilities, said on Friday it will work with the government to help residents take advantage of a scheme to install renewable power generation units at home and sell excess power back to the utility.
The scheme will help the Hong Kong government realise its commitment to cut the city’s carbon intensity per unit of economic output by up to 60 per cent by 2020 when compared with 2005, said CLP chief executive, Richard Lancaster.
“CLP is a large [renewable energy] developer in China and India, but in Hong Kong, it is a more challenging environment,” he told reporters after the listed holding company’s annual shareholders meeting on Friday. “Having a lot of small projects is probably the way that Hong Kong will develop its renewable energy sector.
“We will try to make the scheme as simple and straightforward as possible.”
So far, obstacles for homeowners seeking to join the scheme include a potential need for them to register businesses for selling power back to utilities and paying taxes on the income. Then there are strict building codes that might deem many rooftops as unsuitable for wind or solar device installations.
