Solar Panels

I had 3 solar panels, totalling 1.65kW, supplied & installed by Iberdrola in June 2021, costing a little under €4,000.

Iberdrola are my supplier, so they used my consumption history to recommend the ideal output of panels to have; and they also used google maps and then an onsite survey to recommend the best roof & orientation to site the panels. The panels were also installed in such a way that I could add additional panels in the future if I want to.

The forecast Return on Investment (ROI) was 6-7 years, which I am on track to achieve, as I save around €50 on my electricity consumption. It should be noted that most of this is by 'self-consumption' - I use the electricity that I generate, so I don't have to buy it from the grid (Iberdrola) at a tariff of approx. €0.15 per kWh. When I have spare generated electricity, this is sold to the grid at a variable rate, but roughly speaking €0.05 per kWh.

I know people who were persuaded to buy much higher output of panels, which, in my opinion, is fine, if you are consuming it. However, from the rough figures above, you will note that the ROI would be longer the more you just sell to the grid. If your property is a holiday home, it is probably nice to know that when you're not there, your panels are paying for themselves, albeit at a slow rate.

I am a resident, so, particularly in the spring & summer, I consume the electricity that I generate on my pool pump, plus I use my washing machine & dishwasher during the day, when I am generating. My only real spike of cost is when I cook in the evening.

There will be many suppliers who are cheaper, but are likely to want to persuade you to buy more panels than you really need; and there are some suppliers who offer a 'virtual battery', where they virtually store the electricity that you export to the grid and then sell it back to you when you need it (in the evening, for example). I think this is worth exploring.

In the not too distant future, it is likely that we will have more panels, use these to charge our electric cars, but also use the car batteries to provide electricity to the property in the evening, further reducing the amount purchased from the grid.

In 2015, the Spanish government imposed a 'solar tax' on domestic solar installations and refused to allow electricity generated by this method to be sold into the grid. This was, apparently, an entirely misguided attempt to maintain income for the energy suppliers and distributors, who also had immense costs in maintaining and upgrading the grid. This tax killed the solar panel market, but was then removed in 2018 - so maybe this is why the Spanish have not bought so many solar panels. Plus, a high proportion of Spaniards live in apartment blocks and, whilst some companies offer a solar panel that can be attached to a balcony and provide a small amount of power, the majority of homes have nowhere to site them. 

Spain actually produces the 2nd most electricity from solar in the EU (Germany is first), but only the 7th most per head of population. This is mainly due to other countries implementing laws that all new build houses must incorporate solar panels, where Spain does not.

Hope this helps!

This you very much for your very exhaustive and enlightening reply. I truly appreciate it.

I am also a full time resident as for the last 2 years. My bill is usually just over a 100 euro which I consider to be on the high side as we are only 3 persons at home. I did contact Iberdrola as I am also their client. A lady engineer with a lady translator visited my home and concluded that they couldn't offer me a project as the panels would need to be mounted on a pergola as the dividing walls between neighbouring properties are quite high. Iberdrola suggested having this installed first before offering anything.

I also had offers by other suppliers but I am still studying them. One of which was  for a 5kw setup including a pergola costing over 7000 euro. I feel it would take at least 7 years to recover the initial cost. I am 73 years old and don't feel that the expense is justified.

Thank you once again for your contribution.

Best regards

Tony