SOME thoughts on solar panels…
‘I once visited the coal fired power station at Didcot.
Now that coal has gone, I drive past solar farms and hear about big new proposals.
But there are other ways forward, too.
Last year I learned a new German word, balkonkraftwerk, which means balcony power station.
Residents of German apartments are allowed to fit two solar panels to their balcony railings to help reduce their electric bills by up to 30%.
UK home owners can spend £10,000 for rooftop solar installation, but in Germany, balcony installations, at around £44 per panel, can cost the same as just a few meals out.
Perhaps because of this, and because Germany was much more vulnerable to increases in Russian gas prices, the government permits residents of flats to fit these sytems, and many have been installed.
I wonder when I will see balcony solar panels in Wokingham?
Probably not for a while.
One can only imagine the costs of negotiating between flat owners, management agents, building freeholders, council planners and insurance companies that may make the whole idea uneconomic.
Yet Germany is able to generate 2% of UK electric consumption, just from its balconies.
To me, the flats look attractive fitted with sunlight-harvesting panels, and it’s good that they’re saving bills and helping to reduce fossil fuel consumption.’
John Holden, a retired teacher from Reading, is a member of People, Planet, Pint Wokingham which meets at the Rose Inn.
