Solar P. V deal endorsed by local council seems a bit cheap

Joined
25 Jan 2007
Messages
2,415
Reaction score
603
Location
London
Country
United Kingdom
As per the title 3k seems to cheap for an installed P. V system and invertor and 8 panels. What's the catch?

We recently sent you an email with your Solar Together personal recommendation. Our winning installer EEC Solar is offering a discount of 39% compared to the typical market price for a similar high-quality solar PV system.

Who is EEC?
EEC Solar was established in 1991 and has installed over 17,000 renewable energy systems throughout the UK since then. EEC Solar is fully committed to supporting the environment and providing a first-class customer service, which has resulted in them winning the North West Installer of the Year award in 2017 and 2018. EEC solar has a proven track record of delivering installations for Solar Together, with 83% of their customers in our most recent scheme rating their installation experience at 8/10 or above
Your personal recommendation
Your roof details
- You have tiles and a south-west facing, steep roof

- Your roof can fit 8 panels

- Your annual electricity consumption is 2900 kWh

Your recommended package from EEC
You told us you can fit 8 panels on your roof.


EEC Solar
8
The total price of your package is: £3,155
Prices include VAT at 5%. Please note that if you accept the offer, the installer will carry out a roof survey and suggest changes to your contract if necessary.


In your first year:
Solar only With battery

You'll save on your energy bill:
£102 £307

With an export tariff, you could earn:
£108 £37

Your panels will generate:
2,590 kWh. 2,590 kWh

Of which, you'll be able to use:
648 kWh 1,917 kWh

Your independence from the grid:
22 %. 66 %

The amount of carbon emissions saved:
604 kg 604 kg

Personal package breakdown
£3,155

Your offer is made up of the following:
Complete solar panel system
£3,155

  • Roof survey
  • Installation
  • 8 panels
  • Inverter
  • Materials and fittings
  • Monitoring tool
  • Extended warranties
  • Insurance-backed guarantee
 

Attachments

  • PV & Battery spec sheet (1).pdf
    3.4 MB · Views: 219
  • Solar Together Information Pack - Solar PV.pdf
    1.4 MB · Views: 254
Sponsored Links
8 panels approx £1000, the inverter is about £400, being generous and allowing £600 for other items (mounting frame, cables, isolators, etc), that's abut £2000 for parts, which still leaves just over £1k for installing it.
 
It reads like the time limited 1/2 price mattress offers and similar, which go on forever. A bargepole springs to mind.

As with all of these schemes - work out the savings and how many years before you break even on the install cost.
 
Is there still an export tariff (feed in tariff)? If so who gets the payment, could well be EEC Solar. Just checked and the scheme ended in March 2020. So no cash generator there.

I may have missed something so ask them who pays you for the export tariff?

My understanding is that the payback period is approx 10 years and the lifetime of the panels is about the same.

I dont have the exact figures or references just my recollection.

eon will fit a system for just under 4k so the EEC Solar figures look competitive.

You just need to decide if you can fit sufficient panels to give the payback in electricity generated.
 
Last edited:
Sponsored Links
Is there still an export tariff (feed in tariff)?
No, closed to new applications in 2019.

The benefits for any solar installed now are
1. using the electricity as it's generated - very difficult for a domestic property unless battery storage is installed, but batteries will add significant cost.
Far more relevant and worthwhile for commercial installations where most of the power can be used as it's generated.
2. exporting it for whatever price can be had, but that tends to be rather low, around 5p/kWh typically, and requires using a supplier that offers such a thing, most do not.
 
It is not now a profitable proposition.

Do you have an all-electric house, with no gas available, and no other way of heating your house and your hot water? Do you have a swimming pool, or some other thing that uses a lot of electricity in the warm sunny months of the year (but not during the winter or at night)?

I agree the price is suspiciously low. Perhaps they are getting a subsidy from the council or somebody else. Will they tell you?
 
As per the title 3k seems to cheap for an installed P. V system and invertor and 8 panels. What's the catch?

Did you go for it? I'm still pondering my quote...

I agree the price is suspiciously low. Perhaps they are getting a subsidy from the council or somebody else. Will they tell you?

I think its basically a bulk buying scheme:
https://www.hants.gov.uk/landplanni...nge/whatarewedoing/projects/solarbuyingscheme

I haven't spent the time to sit through their rather lengthy Q and A webinar yet to find out too many more details.

This bit on the HCC website linked above puts me off:
"Auction: a supplier ‘auction' was held on 23 March, when our approved solar suppliers made a bid for the work. The supplier with the lowest price wins and it usually favours local suppliers too."

Not keen on the lowest bidder method of choosing a contractor, I'd rather have the highest quality offering
 
Last edited:
No I didn't take it up. Will just fit solar thermal for the hot water. They keep bugging me by email though.
 

DIYnot Local

Staff member

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.


Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

 
Sponsored Links
Back
Top