Ikea will sell solar panels
The Swedish furniture retailer is going to sell solar panels in all 17 of it’s U.K. chain store in the up coming 10 months pursuing a succesful pilot within 10 months following a successful pilot business in one Essex store.
IKEA is responsible for a big amount of potency for the solar industry by deciding to sell solar panels into 17 British stores over the next ten moths.
This sale is going to be a premiere as it is the first time the world’s biggest furniture retailer is selling solar panels on a wide scale. This comes after the store tried a pilot scheme at the IKEA store at Lakeside, Essex (just east of London) that sold a PV system almost daily.
Customers have to give from thei pockets at least €6,800 for 18 panels, the cost of a thin-film PV panels made by China’s Hanergy Holding Group Ltd. An IKEA case study shows that homeowners that put money in this investment will recover the expenses in seven years.
“We know that our customers want to live more sustainably and we hope working with Hanergy to make solar panels affordable and easily available helps them do just that,” reported Joanna Yarrow , IKEA’s head of sustainability in the U.K. and Ireland,.
Like an in-store consultation sugests, customers will also beneft of installation and maintenance of the German-made panels.
This sale is part of IKE’s plan to gain a greener image. The sweedish retailer has a plan to gain a clean energy target and to recieve 70% of the energy the stores need fronm solar and wind power until 2015 it self.
The move is a further step by IKEA towards a greener image. The Swedish company has set its own ambitious clean energy target – to source at least 70% of the energy it needs from solar and wind power by 2015, and all of it by 2020.
The company already has solar panels on its factories, warehouses and stores, and owns some wind farm in Europe.