Investing in your own solar installation, or solar fund
How to make money from solar
Ashley Seager, the Guardian’s economics correspondent, has had 3 kilowatts of solar panels on his home for more than two years. He has made a return on investment, including a 50% government grant, of 7% each year. Without any subsidy or grant, his return would have been 3.5%. This is higher than the rates offered by many a fixed-rate bond investment today. With a feed-in tariff, due in the UK in April 2009, the rates of return will be somewhere between the two figures, depending on how generous the feed-in tariff is. Plus, Ashley argues, the system has surely add to the value of his house. “How could it not?” he asks.
My own solar investing
My disgust at the credit crunch and the machinations of many financial institutions in its aftermath, on top of what I think I know about the coming energy crisis, has led to my opting out of my pension funds. Believing as I do that the energy crisis will result in a second wave of general wealth-destruction - including collapsing share values - I am looking for a safe home for my pension money, and a decent and honest rate of return. I am going to put a good deal of my un-Fred Goodwin-like lump sum into solar PV, and I intend to chronicle the details of my investments - and their performance, expected and real - on this page. I am in the process of setting the investments up.
Collective solar investing
Individuals can invest in solar installations on their own roofs, or - if they live in rented accomodation like me - the roofs of other people. I feel sure that like-minded people will pool their money to create their own solar investment funds in the times ahead. I am very interested in hooking up with fellow citizens who want to consider doing this. By innovating with “people power” in this kind of way, we can cut miscreant banks out of the story. Just as solar and its sister technologies can do energy completely differently and better, so we can do finance differently and better too ….if enough of us make the leap. If you are interested in principle, please contact me using the form below.
