Mr. John Mullins:

As somebody who was told back in 2014 that they were completely mad to think that solar farms would start in Ireland, the reality is that the price of solar has come down so much and will continue to come down such that the payback period for any household in Ireland at the €15,000 rate the Senator mentioned is about seven years. If you can get a quid pro quo financial package between credit unions and the customer, that will help things.

With respect to picking any contractor, whether they are in building, are an electrician, a plumber or a solar PV installer, the best thing to do is talk to people and get references. The beauty of solar PV is that there are no moving parts. It will generally stay on your roof. You do not need to wash it, particularly here in Ireland, although there are issues in other countries, and the reality is that it will stay on your roof and will see most of us out for 25 to 30 years because the degradation rate is only 0.4% per annum. Therefore, you will still be producing electricity after year seven at zero cost. That is an important facet. It will reduce your costs but clearly will improve the marketability of your house, if you are going to sell it, because it is a critical asset.