Solar panels: an advantageous investment

Pascale has had solar panels since 2009. An investment that has proved highly cost-efficient for her.

“I live in a fairly traditional Brussels town house with very high ceilings. It’s magnificent, but difficult to heat! So my heating and power costs were high. Every time I put a little bit by, I invested in energy-saving measures. For instance, I replaced all the bulbs with low-energy versions and had double glazing fitted. But I dreamed of providing my own energy as much as possible. So I thought it would be a good idea to have photovoltaic panels fitted. That was in 2008. Because energy grants were being heavily promoted, I decided: ‘I’ll go for it!’

I contacted a Brussels firm that dealt with it very well. They did a few simulations for various different panel models and surfaces. Eventually I opted for a version where I could recoup the cost price in eighteen months. And that’s the way it was: thanks to energy savings made by having a few minor jobs done, the energy grants and the green power certificates, my investment started earning money after just over a year and a half!

To obtain green power certificates I read my special meter once a year. I send the meter reading to Brugel by e-mail. They let me know how many power certificates I’m entitled to. After that, on the basis of a list of potential buyers I send out an e-mail asking them to make me an offer and I sell to the highest bidder! In my case that’s my own energy supplier: they offer their customers a very advantageous price. And it’s all very quick: I sign a document for the buyer and send the information to Brugel, which transfers the green power certificates to the buyer, and I receive the amount of the sale in my bank account.

My twelve panels, covering a total surface area of around 16 m², now supply between 80 and 90% of the power I use. But I have to admit I’m lucky: my roof is a bit higher than the neighbours so a shadow never falls on the panels, plus the roof is perfectly oriented. And that’s not all: thanks to the grants, I was able to replace my central heating boiler for a new model that is far more efficient!”

Editor. A great deal has changed since 2009: the conditions for obtaining energy grants are more stringent, the federal tax deductibility has been abolished, etc. But the cost of solar panels has fallen sharply in the meantime.
With the current energy grant system, the Brussels government guarantees that the cost of a photovoltaic installation can be recouped in seven years.