As we have always said it all boils down to the bottom line, we all want a better world, we are all worried about climate change and support clean technology but how much is it going to cost and can I really make savings?

The answer is solar costs 2.3 euros a watt to install. and therefore a 16 panel 4kw solar system that may produce 16 kwh a day on average will cost € 9,200. 16 kwh solar PV electricity production per day equates to 85km of driving an electric vehicle in a day, that’s 31,025 km per year.

If you were to drive 31,025 km in a year in a petrol car then that would cost @20km/litre @ € 1.65 / litre = €2,559.

So if you can save €2,559 per year then in 3.6 years you will have saved the equivalent of the purchase and installation cost of the solar system. If you include the cost of a smart charger costing €900 then in a little under 4 years you will have saved the total cost of equipment and after a further 21 years when the solar system reaches end of life you will have saved €2,559 x 21 = €53,739.

So there it is in a nutshell, lifetime financial cost to you and the planet is hugely lower but there’s an initial investment.

The options are:

• Pay lump sum from your savings
• Obtain a loan from a bank. Loans for such ‘Green’ purchases are becoming generally more supported by the banks if there is a defined financial plan. We can also help you with this on a case by case basis.