Photovoltaics is rapidly gaining popularity. The law allows private persons (and in some cases also companies) who have a PV installation to sign the so-called a prosumer agreement, enabling surplus of produced energy to be returned to the grid and, if necessary, to be collected at preferential rates. How does the settlement of photovoltaics look like in practice in Poland?
Are you thinking about investing in photovoltaics? Are you wondering what the settlement of energy from photovoltaics looks like with an energy company? Polish regulations provide for a discount system for prosumers, which allows the surplus of produced energy to be transferred to the grid, and then to collect the surplus, e.g. in winter or at night. We explain the rules of the settlement system.
Who is the discount system for? Who is a prosumer?
The discount system, in which cashless settlements of electricity produced by a photovoltaic installation and collected from a power company are determined, is available to prosumers. Not every investor is considered a prosumer. The prosumer group includes:
- individuals,
- farm owners,
- entrepreneurs who chose photovoltaic panels with a capacity of up to 50 kWp.
To become a simultaneous producer and recipient of energy, you have to sign a contract with the energy company for the provision of energy distribution and sales services (the exception is Energa – when replacing the meter with a two-way meter, the customer automatically becomes a prosumer). The discount system can also be used by:
- housing cooperatives and communities,
- local government units,
- churches and religious associations.
How is electricity from photovoltaics billed?
Prosumer settlement consists in putting surplus energy to the grid that has not been used by the owner of the photovoltaic installation. The surplus can be collected at any time, depending on the needs – e.g. in winter, when the demand for energy is greater and the PV panels produce less electricity. Unfortunately, if we do not use the surplus energy within the year, the generated electricity is lost and is taken over by the energy company. The billing of energy is based on the readings of a two-way meter, which is installed after signing the relevant contract.
After installing the appropriate photovoltaic installation,
the amount of electricity bills is usually 15-20% of the amount before installation,
which is a significant saving.
Settlements for natural persons
In accordance with the provisions of the Act on Renewable Energy Sources, natural persons can collect:
- 80% of the given energy for installations up to 10 kW
- 70% of energy for installations above 10 kW.
The billing period is 365 days, and no additional fees are payable on the amount of billed energy. Each month, the prosumer receives monthly summary invoices, with the balance of energy consumed and delivered, taking into account the so-called a quantitative factor (* 0.8 for smaller installations or * 0.7 for larger ones).
It should be remembered that the owner of the photovoltaic installation must pay fixed fees that cover the costs of access to the grid and its maintenance:
- transmission fee,
- the quality fee and the variable component of the network rate,
- transitional.
In addition, you must pay for meter readings and administrative activities. The amount of the above fees does not depend on the amount of energy.
Settlements for a company
In the case of enterprises, the rules of settlements are slightly different. First, the excess energy is not stored in the grid, but is sold. Thanks to this, the company receives a payment for every kilowatt-hour introduced into the network – about PLN 0.16 net. Which solution is better? Stock or sale? Taking into account the settlement of surpluses, photovoltaics for households turns out to be more beneficial than photovoltaics for companies. Therefore, it is worthwhile for entrepreneurs to choose an installation that covers their current energy needs, and not to over-invest in a PV system to discharge large amounts of electricity into the power grid.
Annual billing of energy from photovoltaics
After 365 days, the energy company is obliged to send a statement in which it will show:
- the amount of energy taken from the utility company,
- amount of energy transferred to the grid (surplus),
- amount of energy stored in the grid for reuse.
Summary
It is worth noting that the use of a photovoltaic installation in a single-family home allows you to reduce electricity bills by up to 80%. The rules for settling photovoltaics make the use of a photovoltaic installation convenient and extremely profitable. The condition that must be met for the settlement to be beneficial and effectively reduce electricity bills is the appropriate selection of PV installation parameters to the needs and method of use. That is why it is worth relying on specialists and carefully choose the company that will deal with the photovoltaic investment.
