Ok. I don’t actually know if those awkward little hex wrenches will be needed to install these panels on your home.
IKEA will soon begin offering solar panels at stores in Great Britain as a test market to see if this program can be expanded worldwide. Great Britain was selected as it offers a good balance of energy pricing and state programs designed to offer consumers incentives when investing in solar.
Manufactured by the Chinese company Hanergy, the panels being offered will cost around $9200 for a 3.36 Kilowatt system, and IKEA estimates that it should take around seven years to pay them off. During that time, consumers should enjoy reduced energy pricing. In select markets, where IKEA can offer those services, any excess energy created might be able to feed back into the local energy grid. Depending on market pricing (which I’m sure will drop quickly if many people start producing excess power) you could even turn a profit faster than seven years.
While other big box consumer home improvement companies have offered panels before, IKEA looks to be taking a slightly more proactive approach to aiding consumers in the consultation and installation of their products. That, and you can get some delicious meatballs while shopping for those panels. Lowes and Home Depot should really look at partnering up with some gourmet food trucks…
(via AP)