Thread by @shortthought

I/others have talked a lot about this but it hasnt cut through, so here's a thread on why mandating all new build housing to have solar panels is virtue signalling, when there are far better options that deliver far greater decarbonisation results. #Solar #PV #EnergyCrisis
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First, planning.

Often, builders buy an outline permission from a landowner, meaning they have to satisfy X, Y and Z to get on site. Often, this means the site isn't viable at the terms the landowner achieved.
Builders take that risk but sometimes govt changes regulations.

This happened recently, with Building Regs for energy efficiency, EVs etc adding between 10% & 30% to build costs. Builders hope govt is sensible with transitions..🤔
Those recent changes put Heat Pumps & Solar panels to the top of 'solutions to help meet regs' pile!

So why can't we mandate solar panels?

Well, everything is a trade off. If you spend on X, you spend less on Y. Maybe we lose affordable housing? Fittings arent as good quality? Cycle lanes go?

But more importantly, people just want the panels, not integration & that's flawed!

What does this mean? It means, stick on a solar panel but it won't actually run the house, it will just help run part of the costs. Sometimes.
No grid connection. No battery, Just panels, generating energy when people aren't in!

And this makes it an add-on. Not a strategy!

And strategy is important, as most homes get sold after 7 years & so we've seen these panels not get replaced or maintained. Why? Because they're an add-on, not integral to the energy!
(worth noting that after 10 years, PV panels generate a lot less energy)

Making them integral to the energy strategy is important and if we want to decarbonise the grid and society, we need to use all mechanisms to get there.

However, if we just want to pat ourselves on the back, then we can add panels on new homes & to hell with perverse outcomes!

So what's another option?
Invest the cost of renewables in making the building more efficient?👍
Invest in community energy? 🫣 Councils oppose, eg-turbines.
Site solutions, like ground source?💵

Or, integrate batteries, or grid connection alongside panels?...🤔

Fwiw, builders prefer fabric as it's integrated.

Battery integration gets expensive as getting it wrong costs (which hindered Heat Pump transition, see podcast), so higher quality is preferred but it's expensive & sees huge delays.

What about grid?
betatalk.buzzsprout.com/509671/9924251…

Like batteries, grid integration comes with challenges. Eg-Too few installers/quality works but a major one is added costs from the elec network operator.
Most will eventually demand something called 3 phrase connection & also charge for offsite connections & grid reinforcement.

This results in the grid profiting in perpetuity from a developer and homebuyers investment, which does not sit well when energy companies do pretty well in the good times, house prices being very high and small businesses struggling hugely.

So now, the simple 'add solar panels', has turned to a job costing tens of thousands of pounds and the question becomes who pays?
Well, the buyer right? Not quite, as homes are set at market rates, so big builders might better absorb extra costs but 99.5% who aren't big, won't.

This puts smaller (SME) builders in jeopardy meaning local employing & investing, 7 in 10 apprentice training & higher quality companies go out of business.
Which as planning keeps asking for more, has been happening more & more; with 80% of SMEs leaving the industry since 1980s.

SMEs were the ones installing heat pumps, solar panels, doing Passivhaus etc, etc. They are vital for decarbonisation! They also partner for innovative energy solutions, like ground source!

Regional employment supply chains also get hit. #FewerLocalJobs #PerverseOutcomes

So what are some alternatives? Govt are getting some strategies correct, as social housing is installing PV, making councils responsible for maintenance & the strategy.👍

This could be extended to communities/businesses who pay for & manage new build renewables. #BenefitShare

It could also work on commercial buildings because they have a lot of roof space, so someone else could manage part of generation when, eg-factories arent in use, or a business can offset costs over the long term.

Unlike the house which is sold on average, after 7 years.

Alternatively, we could have money invested in fabric solutions, which is the current strategy, and that includes solar panels. Though builders prefer Heat Pumps, as they are building integral.

Or, money could go to community programmes, such as wind turbines.....

But we're back to the first issue....planning! Councils oppose onshore solutions and the govt knows that, which is why they leave the job up to them! #TransferAccountability!

And so they transfer accountability & demand builders put on panels, despite knowing the barriers!

And who wins? Nobody really. Definitely not the climate.

This isn't even a 'perfect being the enemy of good' scenario. It's just bad, virtue signalling accountability transfer being an enemy of anything sensible!

Good would at least have a strategy!

As an aside, solar thermal (for hot water), could complement heat pumps but costs really do spiral when you do both (at least its integrated) and there are space issues to overcome but sadly, electricity dominates the debate, which harms innovation in this great technology.

Much more could be said on, eg-why zero carbon housing was cancelled (look up Code for Sustainable Homes & the Merton Rule) or green grants which exampled PV flaws but if we want solar panels on all homes, we need to make it possible with a strategy, not a social media whim!

We could, right now, help reduce the drilling costs which make ground source so costly. Implement wind turbines for 200+ homes, not PV on one. Make new builds even more efficient. Help vital SMEs.

But to get there, we must realise that even climate solutions have trade offs.

Demanding solar panels on new homes is virtue signalling as we know it's wasting a strategy & ignoring trade offs, plus creates unsustainable, perverse outcomes.

We need a wholesale decarbonisation strategy, not one based site by site.
#Renewables #EnergyCrisis #Solar