PRIME Minister David Cameron has been accused of pursuing an “anti-renewables agenda” and reneging on a promise made by Business Secretary Vince Cable.

A director of a leading Teesside renewable energy company has spoken of his “grave concern” over the recently announced fast track review of feed-in tariffs for solar energy.

In an open letter to Mr Cameron, David Hunt, a director with Eco Environments, says: “The proposals will effectively sacrifice the UK’s flourishing solar industry and have already frozen investment in projects over 50kWp which includes community projects and businesses wishing to do the right thing.

“The coalition said it would ‘encourage community-owned renewable energy schemes where local people benefit from the power produced’.

“Indeed, Vince Cable told me personally at an event in Liverpool that the Government is ‘fully committed to Feed-in Tariffs’.”

Under new proposals, the Government wants to cut the subsidy for installations producing 50kW to 150kW from 32.9p/kWh to 19p, while installations producing over 150kW will have their subsidy cut from 30.7p to 15.7p.

Solar farms producing over 250kW would receive only 8.5p.

Mr Hunt says: “We have therefore been shocked by these proposals which will once again leave the UK’s solar industry lagging far behind other countries.

“Unless the UK approach on solar is reconsidered, the sector could be sent into another tailspin in just 18 months.

“Allocated support is likely to run out for solar projects of any size, as a result of recasting the feed-in tariff as a capped mechanism in the Spending Review.