Parent company says government does not support solar development, as Zep Solar UK becomes fourth UK solar business to close in a fortnight

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A solar power company backed by the billionaire inventor Elon Musk has pulled out of the UK, blaming the government for not supporting the technology.

Zep Solar UK, which is owned by SolarCity where the Tesla boss is chairman, becomes the fourth UK solar business to close in a fortnight. SolarCity laid the blame squarely on cuts to solar subsidies announced by the Department of Energy and Climate Change in the summer.

A company spokesman said: “We had been exploring opportunities in the UK but based on the Decc decision we’re left to conclude that the UK government doesn’t support solar development. We’ve put expansion plans to the UK on hold indefinitely and will focus efforts elsewhere.”

Zep Solar set up a division in Milton Keynes eight months ago and hoped to start selling solar panels in the UK this year. The US-based firm was bought by SolarCity, America’s largest solar company, in 2013 for $158m (£99m).

SolarCity said six staff were affected, with four being laid off and two reassigned to other roles. This month’s closures of three other companies – Southern Solar, Mark Group, and Climate Energy – have cost around 1,000 jobs.

Howard Johns, the chief executive of Southern Solar, said his company going into liquidation was “a direct result of the government’s recent announcements that kill off support for solar energy via the feed-in tariff scheme.”

On Thursday the energy and climate secretary, Amber Rudd, said she was concerned at job losses but she had to control costs to consumers. She claimed solar still had a future in the UK.

Construction News first reported that Zep Solar UK was folding. The company’s managing director, Jo Ferriter, confirmed that it was no longer operating in the UK.