A new incentive has been launched to help households save money on their energy bills.

Under the scheme, households would need to install a renewable heating system into their home.

The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) Payment Calculator, which has been developed jointly by the Scottish Government and the UK Government, will help householders to make informed decisions by more accurately estimating what payments they could receive if they decide to apply for the RHI.

Energy Minister Fergus Ewing welcomed the initiative, saying: "The Scottish Government have invested £50,000 to develop this excellent resource that will allow households across Scotland and the rest of Great Britain to calculate the true cost of savings to their bills if they invest in renewable heat technologies.

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"The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) provides payments to householders who install renewable energy heating systems in their homes. It was introduced to incentivise the use of heat produced from renewable sources, such as wood fuel or heat pumps.

"The Scottish Government is committed in supporting the development of a diverse renewable heat industry that will deliver benefits to consumers. We have developed a range of supporting actions to increase deployment of renewable heat technologies in Scotland. This includes providing interest-free loans of up to 75% of the cost of the installation of renewables technologies, including biomass boilers.

"Renewable heat can not only be used to supply individual homes and businesses, but can be used for district heating to supply large quantities of heat at much cheaper rates. In an era of high energy costs, these are important benefits."

Mike Thornton, Director of Energy Saving Trust Scotland, added: "The recent launch of the domestic RHI has made the installation of renewable heat technologies more compelling than ever for Scottish households, particularly those living in off-gas properties that are often heated by more expensive fuels.

"With rising energy bills and worries about energy security, there needs to be a major transformation in the way we heat our homes. Scottish Government funded support for domestic renewables, alongside the domestic RHI, is helping to make this a reality."

(JP/MH)