Solar: A Hidden Investment
To what extend, exactly?
In the past years the price for solar panels have come down considerably. At present day the numbers are promising a highly lucrative return.
( Wikipedia is the source)
I have been interested in renewable energy technologies from a youth and to this day have experimented with solar panels and models that could see( not their yet) a suburb or town completely running on renewables without changing habits.
So far I have gone from a "spinning wheels" concept to a heated salt that has an extreme ability to retain heat, while being inexpensive. Currently this salt is used at, Solar farms where the heat of sunlight is concentrated on a single spot. Like so...
This is PS20 and PS10( Wikipedia is the source)
Obviously is this not the thing you want in your backyard. It's kinda big. What I'm referring to is photovoltaic solar cells. These are expensive in comparison however in recent years have become more... lucrative...
Let me explain. Via my Country South-Africa as an use case.
Facts to be noted.
- South-Africa is a sunlight rich country.
- Our Currency ZAR is subject to change( often) Currently hovering at R13.4 for each 1USD
- We are an coal rich nation and use coal as our main resource to generate electricity.
- Our Electricity bills are on a scale like income tax...
- We largely import photovoltaic cells from abroad. And yes it is a long ride.(South-Africa)
Currently this is the numbers, should I wish to install a 3Kw/h solution.
An 1unit or 1kw/h measured is currently just shy of R2 or 0.15USD
My store I tend to look at.
http://www.gwstore.co.za/product/solar-kit-1-3kw-grid-tied-system/
12 x Renesola 250wp Premium Grade Solar Modules **see notes
1 x Solar World Sunplug 3.0 – 3kW Grid Tied Inverter ** see notes
1 x GW High Voltage Single String Combiner Box
1 x Set roof mounts ** see notes
1 x Set MC4 connectors
1 x 50m x 4mm Suncable
1 x 20Amp AC Circuit Breaker and mini DB box
Notes – all components denoted with ** see notes, are interchangeable for either higher quality units, different brands or 3 phase instead of single. In the case of roof mounts, the selection is based around using galvanized hot dipped rails or aluminum sun rails. A grid limiter is also available for users with prepaid meters.
All of this for R58,149.31 or 4339 USD. Excluding labour this could be another R10000(746USD) depending on transport location etc and I'm over exaggerating with labour. I guess this could change a lot based your country.
So for a total of R68,148.31(est) or 5085 USD you could be the new owner of 3Kw/h when the sun shines. Also I chose the grid tied version. This allows your local electrical provider to provide electricity during night times etc.
So lets do the "Investment grade math"
First we need to assume an daily sunshine hours.
So In South-Africa we could easily assume 11 avg throughout the year.
Now for the math:
311365.25=12053.25Kw
The value of these units at 1.8( to make sure it's profit) is R21,695.85 or 1619.09 USD...
This equates to an annual return of 31.8%!
Now something the remember. This is a saving only if you use on avg 3Kw or more continuously during Daylight, should you use less you would save less...
This is excellent for Companies and those resorts that need's some "Going green" status while making it worth their while. What stock or broker could undeniably give you an 30% annual return on investment?
So who is buying solar panels tomorrow? Just remember to do your homework and take into account where you live(Obviously the arctic circle might not be ideal...)
31.8% return is amazing. In the United States the whole solar thing seems to be a cartel. I live in Arizona where the sunlight is plentiful. It is actually the best state in the United States to have solar but everyone has to be licensed to install the stuff. It is BS. They act like you can't do you own setup. If a person could source panels from China and cut out the middle man and do installation themselves it would be possible. If Elon Musk can get his battery packs out there cheap enough then true power independence in Arizona could be very possible and possibly economical.
If it's large scale. You have Melted salts,which I mentioned in the post. It is very,very cheap already....
someone just needs to do it. Like Germany. Yes some,resouces(coal) might be cheaper... in USD but costs Trilions in other effects of the world. We one have One world. Lets not "Mess Up".
I do support the green energy and everything, but I see an important issue. You depend on the state to purchase the energy from you and the price might changed, beware of that it had happend in the past.
Another point, much more money might be made, in connection with solar pannels, on two things. First the land lots, getting a good lot that is enlighted for whole day might cost zero to nothing compared to what you can actually sell it for when someone decided to start a solar panel plant in that spot. Second is that the panels cannot be destroyed normally but must be recycled, starting a company to recylce those is actually more profitable. I have experience as I have done few legal advices in regard of those plants.
Edit: typos, writting from blackberry.
There are solutions on the blockchain for selling solar power.You sell it via a smart contract. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2079334-blockchain-based-microgrid-gives-power-to-consumers-in-new-york/
The idea is for A big house or Business to deploy this.Due to the ever higher energy costs. Battery cells from Tesla might become more viable. And then yes You would 100 % be free from government energy. In South-Africa we have Eskom... Currently stable because of economy down turn. My point. I'm well aware of this. Also grid tied could be swapped for bi-directional and hence be on a later stage be used to give power to your neighbour. In South-Africa it is illegal to pump electricity back into the system...
i think a dieing planet in the future is pretty important of an issue. The fact cancer exists because of the impact humans have had. Don't believe me? research cancer over the last 150 years. Victorian/industrial age fucked everything.
Problem with solar energy production is that it is highly climate dependent.
For example, Tasmania where i live has an average daily window of about 3.4 hours in which PhotoVoltaic panels actually generate electricity.
It's also very dependent on the buyback policies on the grid, I think the NEM (national energy market) in australia is only paying peanuts for energy generated by homes. Hopefully the increase in battery tech assists in this.
I wouldn't say that is a "Problem" . It is however a cause and effect. Perhaps you could have wind? If so that is where you should look.
I guess it was a poor choice of words in this context. I've just had to explain that to a few people who live in the area that think solar is the solution to all their problems.
We have a very effective hydro system in our state, and a few wind farms. There isn't a great deal going for home-scale wind generation as yet. Just a matter of time I suppose.
Green Energy is a great concept, I myself have a portable solar panel. But here is a question for you. Does your Solar panel and all required accessories work if an EMP event were to happen? Just a thought.
I don't think so.... The inverter would probably go first . The solar panels themselves are resilient due to, facing towards the sun, and being designed with this fact that the sun could "flare" and emit an EMP. How resilient I don't know.
thanks good to know
solar cell need battery to save it electrical power, this battery price is expensive with limited lifetime, this will make investment on solar cell a bit expensive