The COVID-19 pandemic by all accounts has resulted in an incline in the rate of solar panel installations across Australia, says the Clean Energy Regulator. Contrary to other reports which detailed declining investment in renewable energy in 2020, investment has actually remained stable. “I think the evidence very strongly supports the view that industry is getting on and investing, basically because renewables are effectively commercial at this point,” chair of the regulatory body, Mr Parker, said.

Despite an initial slump in solar panel sales at the start of the pandemic, as people have become used to working from home rooftop solar installations have been sought out more frequently. The first quarter of the 2020 calendar year, before COVID struck, saw sales up by approximately 30% from 2019. During Q2, 2020, though, this figure increased to about 40% year on year from the previous year.

In 2019, 2.2 gigawatts of rooftop solar panels were installed across Australia. In 2020, it’s expected to reach 2.9 gigawatts. The regulator claims that were it not for the extreme lockdown measures taken in Melbourne, this number would have been 3 gigawatts. The increase is attributed to people working from home.

Solar panels generally offer a return on investment after four years, but with people working from home increasingly, the payback period can probably be reduced to three years. This is due to greater electricity consumption that can be offset by using renewable energy.

Despite the increases in home solar panel installations, investment in large scale renewable projects was at its lowest levels since 2017 in August, 2020. The Clean Energy Regulator blamed unpredictable Government policy interventions, problems connecting to the grid and network congestion for the slump in projects developed by big green energy providers.

Rooftop solar panel installation, however, is at record levels. Almost 2000 megawatts of rooftop solar was installed across the National Energy Market in 2019-20 – 25 per cent more than was installed during the previous year, and double the amount installed the year before that.

If you’re looking to reduce your power bills and carbon footprint, contact Essential NRG today to arrange a site inspection and a free quote for rooftop solar panels. We’ve been installing residential solar panels for over 10 years across Sydney and have good experience installing tidy solutions that save you money.

Call Paul Monday to Friday between 9:00am and 5:00pm on 0409 381 978. Paul will answer any questions you have about solar panel installation and how you can go green in 2021.