SolarPower Europe is an association of the European solar PV sector. So its bascially a European wide lobby group for solar in Brussels. They have put out a its first Plug-in solar PV report. Plug-in-PV is gaining traction in many European countries. In Germany we estimate that there are at least 2 Mio systems online right now. And Germany is the lead and biggest market.
„The plug-in PV market is growing in Europe, though exact numbers are difficult to uncover. Germany leads the way with over 780,000 registered plug-in PV systems by the end of 2024. Estimates suggesting up to 4 million systems could be in use in Germany“, says the report, so they are even more bullish then we are.
„the French DSO (ENEDIS) tracks up to 34 MW of cumulative PV capacity for systems < 1 kW by the end of 2024. In Austria, the annual market for “micro-PV” systems in 2023 and 2024 is within the 10-15 MW range,27 with around 20,000 micro-systems registered per year, and growing. In Lithuania, since legalising the technology in early 2023, an estimated 350 plug-in PV users have been registered by the DSO. Although market data for this PV segment in most other EU Member States is scarce, industry sources report increased activities and growing markets in France, Spain, the Netherlands, Poland, Italy, and other key EU solar markets.“, the report continous.
Plug-in solar today is legal in all 27 EU Member States except in Sweden and Hungary. Belgium will legalise it in April 2025. Synergrid, the Belgian Federation of DSOs, announced that starting April 17, 2025, homologated plug-in devices can legally be connected to electrical installations in Belgium.
You can find the report here: https://www.solarpowereurope.org/press-releases/new-report-a-deep-dive-on-plug-in-solar-pv-a-fast-emerging-solar-segment
They clearly indentify the biggest obstacles: Legislative or regulatory bans which are in place in some European countries, Mandatory installation by an electricians, which is for example the case for Finland. Burdensome administrative procedures such as approval by the landlord, Distribution system operators or the municipality. And of course the Limitations on the DC side.
But if you reduce or abolish this hurdles and maybe create instructions or Guidelines for safe installations, you can really make the market go up.
For exampel until November 2024 in Lithuania, residents who wanted to install a small solar power plant needed to obtain a construction permit for simple repairs. Such a permit could raise the total cost of installing a plug-in power system by over €500. However amendments to the Law on Construction of the Republic of Lithuania now allow it without permit from the city architect.
The Report also tells us, that some countries „Require (e.g. in Spain, Sweden, some cases in Austria) /recommend (e.g in some cases in Germany) users to seek assistance from a professional electrician, and/or install the system to a separate circuit, which removes the “plug-in” concept and incurs additional costs for theprosumer, reducing the attractiveness of the business case; Or, do not allow excess electricity to be injected into the public power grid (in Spain, the installation of an additional zero-discharge device is required)“, which of course makes it more cumbersome and difficult. Removing the need for a electrician way key for breakthrough in Germany.
The EU Network Code Requirements for Generators (RfG Regulation) sets harmonized grid connection rules for power generation modules ≥800 WAC, while systems under 800 WAC are not explicitly regulated at the EU level, allowing Member States to set their own rules.
However, the New Electricity Directive for Electricity Market Design (2024/1711) supports the integration of small-scale renewables, including plug-in PV systems. Article 15a encourages Member States to promote plug-in mini-solar systems up to 800 W in buildings, advocating for simplified installation and minimal bureaucracy. (More Info from the EU comission: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/markets-and-consumers/electricity-market-design_en)
Material
Flemish households can install plug-in solar panels without registration: https://www.belganewsagency.eu/flemish-households-can-install-plug-in-solar-panels-without-registration