The number of small solar systems is growing ever faster. The next boost from relief for tenants is imminent.
The number of balcony power plants in Germany is growing ever faster – and small solar systems are set to receive a further boost. The Bundestag decided that it should be easier for tenants and homeowners to install a balcony power plant. After the record quarter that just ended, Carsten Körnig, General Manager of the German Solar Industry Association, sees this as a “booster for the solarization of balconies”. He expects a further surge in demand for so-called plug-in solar devices.
According to the Federal Network Agency’s market data register, more small solar systems went into operation in the second quarter than ever before. As of Wednesday, it showed more than 152,000 balcony power plants that went into operation between April and June. That is a huge increase of 52 percent compared to the previous record holder, the second quarter of 2023. In total, the market data register currently records a good 563,000 systems in operation. The real numbers are likely to be even higher, as there is a late registration period of several weeks and some systems are simply not registered.
Relief for tenants and homeowners
The Bundestag passed changes to tenancy law and property ownership law. The law still has to pass the Bundesrat. In order to install a balcony power plant, tenants currently need the express consent of their landlord – or, as a property owner, the approval of the owners’ association. This consent can currently be refused without any objective reason.
Now the generation of electricity through plug-in solar devices is to be included in the catalogue of so-called privileged measures. These are structural changes that cannot simply be blocked by landlords and homeowners’ associations (WEG) – such as modifications for barrier-free access or burglary protection. Landlords and the WEG should still have a say when it comes to how exactly a plug-in solar device is installed on the house. However, whether such a system can be installed at all would then no longer be fundamentally controversial.
BSW praises “right to harvest solar power”
FDP politician Katharina Willkomm said in the Bundestag that there are still too high legal hurdles for plug-in solar devices. “We are changing that today.” SPD MP Zanda Martens said that up to now the necessary consent of the landlord was often the biggest hurdle, but that this is now being removed.
Körnig said that a “right to harvest solar power” would be enshrined in law. Daniel Föst, construction and housing policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group, spoke of an important step that would enable large energy savings in households. Green energy politician Katrin Uhlig praised the changes, saying they made it even easier to install a plug-in solar system. “This will make it easier for even more people to participate in the energy transition and play an active role in shaping it.”
SPD MP Daniel Rinkert believes that the changes will strengthen the energy transition within our own four walls. This will enable tenants and owners to decide for themselves whether they want to install such devices in their homes.
Simplifications already decided
Balcony power plants had already received a boost from Berlin in the last quarter. As of April 1, the registration of the devices was simplified. A simplified registration in the market master data register of the Federal Network Agency is now sufficient.
A solar package is also in force – it allows, among other things, the use of a normal socket for the systems, the temporary use of old, non-digital meters and a higher output of 800 watts on the inverter instead of the previously valid 600 watts. Almost every reduction in bureaucracy leads to a revival of demand, says Körnig.
The current boom may also have been fueled by cheaper prices. The BSW does not keep any statistics on this, says Körnig. However, he assumes “that – as with module prices – there have been price reductions here in recent months.” In hardware stores, balcony power plants were recently available for just a few hundred euros.
According to RWTH Aachen, profitable in three to six years
Balcony power plants are relatively small solar systems that are connected to the household power grid via a socket. They do not have to be attached to the balcony that gives them their name. The electricity they produce reduces consumption and thus the electricity bills of their operators. Any excess electricity flows into the public grid free of charge. Whether they are worthwhile depends not only on the purchase price and the location, but also on whether the operators use the electricity during the time they generate it. According to a recently published study by RWTH Aachen on behalf of Eon, they are worthwhile on average after an operating period of three to six years.
Source: Stern
