Panels are becoming more expensive, but this will not affect the overall price of photovoltaics, says the expert

For households, we see a drop in installations by about a third compared to last year. The market is changing, household demand has clearly fallen.

But it’s not like we’re experiencing arrest. From the point of view of companies operating in Czech photovoltaics, it is necessary to say that, on the contrary, large installations, i.e. land-based power plants, are growing, and the commercial segment at the level of private companies also remains interesting.

However, it is different from the point of view of households. The subsidies from New Green Savings worked and it was a definite impulse. People bought photovoltaics precisely with the idea that they would receive a subsidy from the state. Now they have lost this advantage and there is a loan on the table that does not yet have definitive specifications. Customers in the residential sector are therefore now paralyzed.

I think that the trend will be better than it appears now. People will get used to the new standard in the form of preferential loans, the residential sector will revive again. The question is rather when people will start to perceive loans as something that will stay with us.

We can see that this year the capacity of about 150 to 200 megawatts, i.e. 13 to 17 thousand power plants, will be built, which is quite a bit.

Next year, it could go up a bit, when people get used to interest-free loans. However, we will not be close to the power of 600 or 700 megawatts, which was installed here before. We will not go faster than 300 to 350 megawatts per year.

Last year and in previous years, we experienced a relatively large price drop. We got to the point where the selling prices of the panels were so subsidized by the manufacturers that they went below the production costs, which is unsustainable. So it was to be expected that the price would rise, and it is happening right now.

It started slowly around the beginning of this year, and now prices are roughly thirty percent higher than in December.

But I would like to reassure those who plan to install photovoltaics on their house, because the price of the panels is only a marginal part of the whole solution, even after the increase in price. Much more fundamental are the costs of battery storage, inverter, labor and the like.

First, China began to regulate how silicon, which is part of the panels, is processed. He wants factories to do low-energy processing, which is a more advanced and cost-effective method, but costs more money and fewer factories can do it. So some do not continue with silicon processing anymore and those that do are more expensive.

The second reason is the abolition of export subsidies. In China, subsidies were intended for panels for export to Europe, and they ended this year.

There are a few rules that I would personally follow in terms of quality and stability. Similar to Raylyst Solar, a number of installation companies are also members of the Solar Association, which means that they undergo training and make demands on themselves in order to be of high quality. I would start by looking at which companies in my area are members of such an association.

Of course, I would like a company that has been on the market for some time and can demonstrate completed implementations, references and experience. I would also put a lot of effort into looking at how he communicates, whether there are any inconsistencies in communication.

The association is a really good guide for finding a company that is serious about business and wants to stay on the market for a long time. Because of the service, its availability and product quality. I would not recommend buying a solution from an unknown and unverified company.

If you open artificial intelligence on your mobile and ask about the manufacturer and whether they are among the world’s leading producers in the given segment, you will almost always get the right answer. That’s the fastest thing people can do themselves.

This is an essential topic. But the reality is that installation companies have a lot of work, which is quite complex and associated with safety and responsibility. So I don’t think that the quality companies I know would claim exorbitant prices.

On the other hand, in my opinion, the market itself will take care of the discounting. The number and average size of commercial installations is increasing, although the number of small residential installations has fallen significantly. Business spills over into a smaller number of orders, but there are still the same number of implementation companies. They need to be competitive and one of the ways is to go down with the price.

It depends on the behavior of the family. This is also the moment when you know a quality installation company. She will come to you and look at the way of energy consumption.

For a family with two children and an electric car, the payback will be very fast. The absence of an electric car will extend the return on investment by years.

Unfortunately, the frequency of crises that confirm the importance of renewable sources is high and the undeniable advantage of an electric car in conjunction with home photovoltaics is precisely the household’s resistance to energy fluctuations.

Czechs have long been good with batteries for installations in family houses. We installed a lot of batteries from the beginning. Compared to other countries, it is standard here to buy photovoltaics for a family house with battery storage, and I think that is correct.

In general, purchasing a battery will allow you to manage consumption. If it is delayed in time, for example after returning home from work, when the sun is no longer shining in the evening and you have a full battery, you can charge the car or use it to start the washing machine or dishwasher in the evening, because you could not earlier in the day.