ᐅ Is a solar panel system still worth it? How many years does it typically take to start seeing benefits?

Hi Richard, for companies it can also be worthwhile, for example if the company is otherwise making good profits and is looking for investment opportunities, even if it results in a loss. Because with the possibility of loss deduction, a significant amount of money can be saved on taxes and recovered. If profits exceed a certain threshold, the tax burden automatically increases, so a loss in one area can still be an overall gain 🙂

I also believe that solar energy is not yet at its end. Solar energy is suitable for companies as well as for private individuals. As my predecessor already pointed out, companies can reduce their tax burden. It is also a matter of mindset.

Hello,

Of course, I am interested in a house where a solar panel system might be installed. However, I am quite unsettled by the political situation because it keeps changing all the time. Who knows who will be in charge in four years and make everything different again.

We have seen this with nuclear power plants. For six months, extending their operating licenses was the law, and then they were completely shut down. If someone invested during those six months, they really got a bad deal. 🙂

Although I support the energy transition and care about the environment, I also have to be able to afford such things.

If your main focus is really the financial aspect, I would be more cautious with such a long-term investment. You mentioned yourself that you are no longer in your twenties, and such a system takes a very long time to pay off.
In that case, the potentially more manageable costs of an energy provider might be the better choice.
As I said, this applies if it’s only about the money and there are no environmental considerations involved.

What Hans is saying is one of the main problems. It can’t be that politicians just do whatever they want. When I see the recent back-and-forth in Bavaria, do they even know what they want anymore? Either, as a politician, I create the necessary basic conditions, which also includes funding and planning permission/planning for investors, or I need to change my profession—then they can become gatekeepers instead.

Either I manage, as a politician, to establish the necessary basic conditions, including support and planning for investors, or I have to change careers – then they can become gatekeepers instead 😎

This is a solid point, and it’s also the reason why many people feel uncertain. They plan major energy transitions, but in practice, they leave consumers out in the cold. So, nothing new on that front.