Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, launched Solar Together last year and 1,185 residents have signed up to the group buying scheme.
A total of 7,962 residents initially registered an interest in the solar scheme, which promises an average 26% discount on the installation costs, with 1,185 now signing up and paying the deposit. Between 800 and 1,000 projects are expected to go ahead, depending on survey results.
Councillor David Baines, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Portfolio Holder for Climate Emergency and Renewable Energy, said:
We know that many people are interested in installing solar panels both to cut their energy bills and to do their bit for the environment but may have been put off by finding a trustworthy contractor or just because the process seemed too complicated.
Solar Together helps to address those concerns and give residents a simpler way to make the leap – the take-up across the city region shows that many people have now taken that step.
We know that we will need to halve our total energy use as a city region to hit our target of being net zero carbon by 2040 or sooner and every house and business that can produce its own energy takes it that much closer to our target.
Nationally, the Solar Together initiative has delivered over 7,000 installations.
Councillor Graham Morgan, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Portfolio Holder for Housing and Spatial Framework, said:
With energy prices continuing to increase, residents across Liverpool City Region are looking for opportunities to reduce their carbon emissions, save on energy bills and increase their independence from the grid.
With our scheme to retrofit energy saving measures, we are continuing to work with our local authorities to help people deal with the cost-of-living crisis and meet our environmental targets.
For those looking to invest in solar panels, the Solar Together group-buying scheme has helped drive down installation costs and it is encouraging to see so many people take advantage.
