Anya Kussé
As a leading player in the energy market, we unburden companies in their energy policy and develop future-proof energy strategies. Our team of experts negotiates, manages and optimizes our customers' energy contracts in a continuous and transparent manner. Supported by AI-driven software, we provide insight into the current and future cost of each MWh. We integrate sustainability into our overall approach and work pragmatically and solution-oriented to support you in the energy transition. Together, we create the most ideal energy landscape for your business.
More and more companies are investing in solar panels. It makes sense: it's a smart move toward sustainability and cost savings. Yet we at Odot, as energy accountants, notice that the financial picture around solar energy is changing rapidly. One of the biggest concerns? The low - and sometimes even negative - fee for injecting surplus power into the grid.
From revenue to cost
Whereas companies used to get a nice compensation for the power they did not consume themselves, today we increasingly see low injection rates, especially at times of peak production (sunny afternoons in spring and summer). In some cases, this even results in negative prices: companies have to pay to put power on the grid.
Why are these rates dropping?
The causes are varied:
1. Oversupply during peak times
Solar panels all produce at the same time. This creates a surplus of power on the grid on sunny days, while demand is often limited at the same time.
2. Higher imbalance prices
Imbalance costs tend to weigh more heavily in injection contracts because the return to the grid is not always predictable. Fluctuations create larger differences in grid utilization, which is absorbed by charging extra margin to the end user.
3. Hour-based billing by energy suppliers
Classic contracts based on average monthly prices are disappearing. In their place are dynamic contracts with hourly prices. As a result, companies directly feel the impact of price fluctuations - including negative prices at times of overproduction.
4. Additional charges per kVA
In addition to the injection price itself, suppliers in many cases charge additional fees. Consider rates per kVA, which depend on the installed capacity. In addition, the markdowns per MWh injected are often higher than the surcharges a company is offered for the power to be paid. These additional charges make the net result of injection even less favorable.
What does this mean for your business?
Companies that consume little during the day, and thus inject a lot of power, sometimes turn a loss on their solar power today. This makes a classic payback calculation less reliable. A solar panel installation purely aimed at injecting maximum kilowatt hours is often economically obsolete anno 2025.
What can you do to reduce the impact?
The financial value of solar power today is no longer in the volume you produce, but in how smartly you use it. Below are five strategies that we as energy accountants can recommend to get the most out of your installation - even when injection yields little or nothing.
⚡Divertconsumption to moments of generation
A direct way to be less dependent on injection is to increase your own consumption at the right moments. Think of charging stations for electric cars, cooling systems, or production processes you can control when the sun shines.
⚡Shareyour surplus power
This so-called Energy Sharing allows you to transfer the power you do not consume yourself to another entity within your group or even to third parties. Conditions and options vary by situation, but in many cases it is an interesting way to get more value out of your solar production, without depending on injection tariffs.
⚡ExamineBattery Storage or Energy Sharing
A battery provides the ability to temporarily store power when production exceeds consumption. This is especially interesting in locations where there is a lot of injection during the day, but there is also consumption in the evening or at night....
⚡Optimizewith curtailment
Curtailment literally means limiting production when it is not economically or technically interesting to inject. Instead of swallowing negative prices or paying extra injection costs, you can deliberately choose to temporarily shut down (part of) your production. This sounds counterintuitive, but in a properly calculated scenario, curtailment can be a smart way to avoid losses and optimize your overall energy balance.
⚡Analyzeand optimize
Every business is different. A thorough analysis of your consumption profile, production, and grid capacity is crucial for a profitable strategy.
Conclusion: time for a thoughtful energy approach.
Every situation is unique. The ideal strategy depends on factors such as:
- Your consumption profile and production curve
- Available grid capacity
- Contractual agreements with supplier and grid operator
- Technical installation options
A thorough analysis is therefore the basis for any smart intervention. As an energy accountant, we not only help you collect the right figures, but more importantly, we help you interpret them correctly and link concrete action to them.