Middle East conflict boosted home solar sales
One side effect of the Middle East conflict is that households have rushed to install solar panels and heat pumps to save money.
Latest figures showed that there were 27,607 solar panel installations in the UK in March this year. This is the highest monthly total since 2012, when consumers were awarded generous inflation-linked payments for electricity from solar panels for 25 years.
And the increase wasn’t only in Britain but worldwide as Chinese solar exports doubled this March to a record 68 gigawatts (GW) as nations in Asia and Africa sought alternatives to high-priced fossil fuels.
In the same month, the number of people in the UK replacing their gas boiler with a heat pump increased by almost a quarter, making it the second highest month for government grant applications since the scheme started.
“The crisis, marked by more than 60 per cent higher gas prices in some regions, has accelerated the shift to solar and heat pumps as a way for consumers to protect themselves from higher energy bills,” says Midlands green energy expert Ron Fox, of Noreus Ltd, at Keele University’s Science and Innovation Park.
Ron said there were now two million solar installations across the country with an average of 3,000 installations a month.
He said there were many advantages in switching to solar panels, including protecting people against rising utility bills and from unexpected increases by utility companies.
Also, this environmentally-friendly choice provides your home with electricity, central heating and hot water all year round.
Plus, the panels can make you money with attractive green incentives backed by the Government.
A typical solar panel installation costs about £6,100 with annual savings of up to £650 a year, with a payback of usually between nine and 15 years.
As for a solar-assisted heat pump or thermodynamic panel solar system, it provides hot water from 90p a week, reduces your carbon footprint and provides hot water 365 days a year, whatever the weather.
Finally, Ron reminded homeowners and renters that they could have the option this summer of buying plug-in solar panels to be put on balconies, which connect into mains sockets and can usually provide between 5 and 25 per cent of a home’s electricity.
“Now is a good time to consider switching to green energy with the forecast that a typical home’s energy bill is expected to rise from £1,641 a year under the current price cap to £1,843 next month in July,” concluded Ron.
This article raises some important questions, said Ron. Has the situation in the Middle East prompted you to move to green energy, as some of our readers have? Have you installed solar panels or a heat pump this year? Are you worried by the increase in energy prices? Send your views to Ron Fox at [email protected]
If you want more advice on solar panels, heat pumps and green energy, contact Ron, of Noreus Ltd, on 0845 474 6641 or here
Caption: A sunny outlook for solar panel sales this year. Picture: John Butterworth
