An exercise in applied energy economics, social contagion theory, and the art of the reluctant rooftop installation ACT I: THE DEMAND SIDE – A LOT More Things That Need Power Finland today uses about 83 terawatt‑hours of electricity per year. That’s a lot. But the pipeline of new industrial projects we examined – data centres,…
You have witnessed this scene. A sales agent – someone who sells solar panels, home batteries, and access to energy arbitration and the reservimarkkina (the reserve market for grid stability) – makes a factual, verifiable claim: “Since April, my customers on average have not paid anything for electricity. In fact, they have been paid to…
Note: the author himself sells solar panels. However, facts are facts. For years, Finnish homeowners were told that solar panels are a nice environmental gesture but a financial stretch. Payback periods of 10–15 years were common wisdom. That wisdom is now obsolete. The combination of three converging forces – rising fuel prices, redesigned grid tariffs,…