PV panels 'better then money in the bank'

With news of escalating energy bills and the rising cost of living, people are increasingly looking for ways to save money on their bills. Ireland is looking at more sustainable and renewable energy sources that are also cost effective. 

Solar panels provide an energy source that is free and can be utilised anywhere the sun shines and with advances in solar technology over the past decade, that now even includes the year-round Irish climate. 

Robert Goss of Pinergy Solar Electric explains that our dependence on electricity is also increasing: “Everything in your house runs on electricity and more and more people are working from home and are using electricity during the day, and more and more people have electric cars, which they can charge during the day and a small number of people even have a heat pump which runs during the day and uses electricity, so in other words, we’re moving towards a more electrified environment.”

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Ominous warnings about the Irish networks’ capacity to generate enough electricity this winter has also made people nervous about potential power cuts and black outs. Robert continues: “People have got two objectives: one is energy independence and the other one is financial savings.”  

People’s motivations also come from environmental concerns. Robert notes: “I think a lot of customers like the idea of purchasing less from the grid, knowing full well that most of that electricity is made in a high carbon way, most of it from coal or something else. They prefer to use less ‘good electricity’ and they would like to get to a situation where half or more of the power that they use, that they make themselves.

“Because I’ve been involved in the industry since 2010, of course for me this is a ‘no-brainer’. … So, for example the question, ‘Does it work in Ireland?’ The answer to that question is ‘Yes’ because it’s sufficiently sunny in this country and bright. It’s about seven or eight hours of brightness and between the long days from April to October, it’s really very effective.

“If you look at production across the year, it’s exactly related to the longer or shorter days. May and June are fantastic but you won’t ever cook the Christmas turkey with solar power.”

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For most clients, a hybrid situation where the PV panels work in conjunction with the power grid is the best option. The number of panels installed depends on the needs of the household, how many hours are spent in the house, how many people live there and the current bill amount. These lifestyle questions then determine how many panels they need.

Robert cautions: “If you meet people that are using very little electricity, then it isn’t financially worthwhile for them to make a big investment in PV.” However some people are motivated because they ‘want to be green’ and low users can also sell back their excess to the grid. 

Panels now are much more effective: “Per square metre, there’s twice as much power now, which is good.”

 Robert estimates “They should pay for themselves in six years and they’ll last for 25” 

The cost of installing PV panels is generally €6,000 to €8,000 and Robert would like to see finance made available for that investment. 

“What would be very exciting would be if the credit unions and maybe the Government were to jump in with some low interest loans.”

He says: “One of the groups of people we’d love to get involved with are the high energy-using young families, let’s somehow or other enable those people. That would be great.”

For Robert investing in solar is ‘better than money in the bank’ .