The RHI operates in a similar manner to the Feed-in Tariff system, and was introduced through the same legislation - the Energy Act 2008.
The Coalition Government confirmed its support for the RHI in the October 2010 Spending Review and published details on 10 March 2011.
The Government has not announced how it will encourage low carbon heating after 31 March 2021, or the supply chains on which it relies.
The Non-Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme (NDRHI) in Great Britain closed to new applicants on 31 March 2021.
The list was extended in April 2014 to include air to water heat pumps and deep geothermal.
Although intended to support a range of renewable heat technologies, nearly all the initial incentives were paid for biomass boilers.
The larger initial tariffs for biomass boilers decreased the demand for other renewable technologies including heat pumps and solar thermal.
In Northern Ireland, the RHI scheme was implemented with serious flaws, allowing business owners to make a profit from heating properties that were previously unheated.