Solar ... In the news

I was considering getting solar panels when I get my house in January/February.


As I understood it, under the previous deal it would pay for itself around 10 years after install.


If the subsidy is cut by 65% does that mean that its going to be 20 years before it pays off and that's the life span of the system.


So it's not worth buying anymore for me is it?

If it weren't for the EU panel import tariff this would probably give a reasonable rate of return - especially with the potential for EV charging and storage down the line.

I sill think there should be a variable FIT depending on aspect to aviod the German midday glut but I guess again storage solutions may engineer away this current issue over the 20 year FIT time horrizon.

michaels wrote: »

If it weren't for the EU panel import tariff this would probably give a reasonable rate of return - especially with the potential for EV charging and storage down the line.

Personally I think the expression 'rate of return' is misleading when applied to solar PV income.


If someone invests £5,000 in a long term cash ISA at 2% or 3% they still have their £5,000 capital, plus compounded interest.


Invest £5,000 in solar and they have a secured an income of x% but their £5,000 is gone.


With the new FIT rates it is going to take, say, 14 years* before the income from solar, and investing that income, will reach that of the ISA.


Take a situation where National Savings brought out a 100% safe financial product where you invested £5,000 and over the next 14 years they slowly gave you back YOUR money and then for the next 6 years you would get a handsome income**. Do you think they would get many takers?


* I use 14 years, but put in your own figure if you think that unreasonable.


** The handsome income could be curtailed if there were any repairs required(e.g. inverter, storm damage, roof repairs etc) in the 20 years. Bear in mind that there will be few firms left in the solar field so competition for your custom to perform repairs will not be fierce.


You need to remain in the same house for 20 years to realize any 'profit'

Whilst Perovskite solar cells are not exactly 'new' news, this article is interesting as the tech is improving fast and could even overtake silicon PV in the future.

'Game-changing' perovskite solar tech could be cheaper and more efficient

According to America’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, these types of cells have increased their efficiency at converting sunlight to electricity from 3.8% in 2009 to over 20% today, and could potentially reach levels of 66% in the future.

To put that into context, traditional PV cells – which account for about 95% of the global market – have a benchmark of about 25%.

Damion Milliken, chief technical officer at Dyesol, a solar energy company developing perovskite solar in Australia with the help of $449,000 in Arena funding, says the increase in efficiencies is “astronomically quick in terms of PV”.

“Most things in this area take decades to go through this evolution”, he says. “Perovskite has the steepest inclination in efficiencies charted.”

Mart.

Once upon a time the average life expectancy on retirement was less than 10 years and at the same time bond yields were in the double digits. Fortuately neither of these are now true.